A blockbuster is often expected to change the fortunes of everyone associated with it. After playing Ranbir Kapoor’s brother-in-law in Animal (2023), Siddhant Karnick believed the film would finally mark the breakthrough he had spent two decades working towards. Instead, what followed was eight months of complete silence.

Looking back at the period after Animal, he says, “I’d had a strong year with appreciation for my performances in Adipurush, Made In Heaven and then Animal to close the year. After Animal, I expected the floodgates to open. I thought, ‘Two decades of grinding, it’s finally paying off.’ I waited eight months. Let alone offers, there weren’t even any enquiries. My phone didn’t ring at all. That’s when I realized nobody was coming to give me opportunities. That slap to my fantasy was the best thing that could have happened because it forced me to shift my approach. I stopped thinking like an actor and started thinking like a producer. The difference now is that I’m not waiting for the phone to ring. I’m the one making the calls.”

The setback also prompted Siddhant to take charge of his own career. Since then, he has acted in two French films, an English film as the lead, and has a commercial release slated for December. One of those projects, the French short film The Diggers, earned him two Best Actor awards.

He says, “After two decades in this industry, I realized the best way to have control over your career is to create your own opportunities. Jean Louis Carrasco was the first filmmaker I reached out to. We’ve been creative collaborators for 18 years, ever since a passion project short film that won at the Bodega Film Festival and was selected for the Cannes Short Film Corner. Together we developed The Diggers, a 24-minute suspense thriller about an Indian immigrant in Paris who gets pulled into the Parisian underworld. What we’ve shot is essentially Act Two of a feature film, with Acts One and Three currently in development.”

While the recognition has been gratifying, Siddhant believes its true value lies in what it signals to the industry.

“The awards are gratifying, but more importantly, they’re validation. They tell financiers and distributors that this team, this story and this execution have both commercial and critical viability. That’s what matters to me at this stage of my career,” he concludes.

The highly acclaimed show 'Made in Heaven' has made a comeback with its second season. This season explores diverse interpretations of both joyful and challenging conclusions in various wedding narratives. In a specific episode, the series addresses the sensitive topic of domestic abuse. Actor Siddhant Karnick portrays the character of an abusive husband in 'Made In Heaven 2'. His impactful performance has resonated strongly with the viewers, leaving a lasting impression.

We ask Karnick how he constructed the character and he says, "A magician never gives away his secrets. The core of Anik is that he is a troubled man. On the outside he is a Life coach, an author of self help books, and has a big following on social media. He’s a narcissist and a violent man. Also, a manipulative man. These are all what you as an audience see from the outside, I did not wish to see him like that. I wouldn’t have been convinced then. You see a villain isn’t a villain in his eyes. He believes what he is doing is right. We all believe we are doing right, when we look at things from our world, because we are the hero in our world, the villain also believes this. He isn’t a villain, if he was, Adhira (Mrunal Thakur) wouldn’t have taken him back , he is a troubled man and at one point breaks down to seek help and she accepts to help him. Adhira plays the knight in shining armour here."

As part of a backstory, Karnick answered for us, the one question that was on everyone's mind - why would she stay despite the beatings?

"Adhira and Anik had a great sex life… See, Anik genuinely loves Adhira, there was never any doubt about that, he has eyes only for her, his love is extreme, toxic...yes! But he loves her to bits, one of the reasons being, is that he felt really comfortable around her so much so that he could bare his dark side to her. This would sometimes lead to violent outburst or most times result in great sex. One of the things about a toxic relationship is that the sex is usually great, that’s one of the fundamental reasons couples in toxic relationships stay together more than they should. Alankrita Shrivastava, the director and writer of the episode, guided me into his psyche. We spoke about the violence being a learned behaviour, maybe as a child he saw that’s how his parents behaved and that made it OK for him to behave this way too. This is some part of the backstory that we created for Anik and I’m really glad to know that the audience have hated Anik."

Amid fashion designer Tarun Tahiliani accusing the makers of the web show Made In Heaven 2 of using his designs without crediting him, Siddhant Karnick, who starred in the said episode alongside actor Mrunal Thakur, has defended the makers.

He tells us, “I can’t really comment on the conversation between the [makers and designers], but I can tell you that when we were shooting, both Mrunal and I and everyone on the set was very much aware that those were Tarun Tahiliani’s designs. There was no intention of taking that credit away from him.”

In fact, the actor adds that he was so enamoured with the outfits that he even thanked the designer on Instagram. “It’s so funny that just before this controversy came out, I had put up a post thanking and complimenting his work,” says Karnick.

Could the chaos have been avoided with just a mention or credit of the actual designer on the show? “Absolutely! I think any artiste who contributes anything [in a show], should be given credit for it. That is the definition of collaboration, right?” he says, adding, “But like I said, I’m also aware the production has been very respectful to every single person who collaborated with the show. So I don’t know how this has happened.”

During the pandemic-induced lockdowns, streaming platforms doled out crime thrillers one after the other. Director Rajshree Ojha’s Potluck (2021), a light-hearted show about the Shastri family that sticks together despite their personal highs and lows, came as a breath of fresh air. Almost one-and-a-half years on, the director is back with the second instalment of the Sony LIV comedy series. In a chat with mid-day, Ojha talks about how the narrative of a tight-knit family lends itself wonderfully to multiple seasons, and how she has the third season ready in her head.

Edited excerpts from the interview.

It has been a positive response. The results are so good that we will start the third season soon. I feel Potluck has found its niche audience.

The showrunners were sure that Potluck would have at least 10 seasons. To be honest, I wasn’t so sure. I like the show’s vibe, so I was sure that it should have at least three seasons. It is in the space of a sitcom, so it can continue to tell the story, like say Gilmore Girls. All we needed was the audience. My biggest fear for the second season was that it was released over a year [after the first instalment]. [I feared that] people forget [a show], especially with so much content out there.

Personally, I like to find humour in the most horrendous situations; it takes away the pressure. I always try to bring in [an element of] craziness. In this season, Dhruv [Harman Singha’s character] loses his job, and I’ve made such a drama about it. We, as Indians, [have a penchant] for melodrama.

There is a scene between the three guys [Singha, Cyrus Sahukar, and Siddhant Karnick] in which they are trying to console Dhruv, who has lost his job, but Cyrus kept cracking up. Everyone was tired laughing at one point. There is a birthday/anniversary scene, which turns hilarious. Also, a scene in the end credits — with Cyrus and Ira [Dubey] in the bathtub — will leave you in splits.

I think Harman was fantastic; he is a director’s actor. Sometimes, when I pushed him, he would get why I am doing so. There was a scene where he was having an internal struggle, which he did beautifully. Ira is my other favourite. [Her character] is shown joining a new office, plus she is trying to fit in. She captured that essence well.

Of course. We are set to have a wedding, which is in my head [at the moment]. But I don’t know what the showrunners are thinking. I think people would be keen to see who Aalim’s [Karnick] parents were, and whether he and Prerna [Shikha Talsania’s character] unite.