He is the good looking actor we cannot get enough of… but his face is in fact a very small part of the mettle he is made up of! KUNAL KAPOOR in conversation with SHUBARNA MUKERJI SHU.
Mapping India
I don’t do too many interviews, so yes it might have seemed that I was disappearing from the scene but I am very much here… and looking forward to a grand new year. Though I am still reeling from so much that happened last year! First I was shooting in Odisha, then down South, then North – my wife rightly said it felt like I was mapping India! Not to forget I have started work on six scripts and am looking forward to each of them. Co-developing these characters, these stories, has been an enriching experience.
For VEERAM, the better part of last year was spent prepping to get into the character of a 13th century warrior which was amazing though it propelled me to live in the gym all the time. I have a metabolism which is faster than Usain Bolt, so it is generally tougher for me to bulk up. So yes, the whole of last year was about a lot of eating and gymming. But VEERAM is an experience which defines the way I see cinema.
RAAGDESH was probably the fastest I have ever said yes to a film. It was so important to be a part of something that spoke about passion. Passion towards your belief, your country… Being a soldier from the ’40s really brought out a part of me I hope to preserve: the need to persevere till you get what you want…
Also Read : Kunal Kapoor’s remarkable transformation for Veeram
Passion versus Convenience
I don’t think today we experience passion of that magnitude around us. I debate vehemently about the perceived impressions of love. It is too much like convenience of late. If it is comfortable and convenient then go for it. People do not want to commit to another, thinking something better, something more will come by… not realising that commitment makes the relationship more deeper. More meaningful. We are spoilt for choice! If we don’t get what we want, we feel like we are compromising.
I once wrote a column called ‘Life in the Times of Digital Camera’. In the olden times when we would click a picture, we would have to wait till it was taken for developing, waiting in the dark room, anticipating the picture. At that time you kind of develop a relationship with the picture. Today you click a picture. If it is nice good, if not, you delete it and move on. There is no anticipation, there is no relationship…
Relationship Value
For me, when I speak about Naina and my relationship, I see a lot of depth has come into it from the time we committed ourselves to the relationship. The way she is, she really immerses herself into whatever she is doing. She really has the knack of learning all there is to it while she is doing it – that is not how I used to be but now slowly I see myself getting more organised. More clear in my views and my answers. She is a very straightforward person. If she likes something, she likes it with all her heart. If she doesn’t, she doesn’t. There is no middle path which is refreshing.
Essential Change
Naina has really brought with her a sense of calm in my life; it is amazing how much you can do if you are feeling at peace with your personal life. She has brought that kind of calm into my life…Over the last five years, I have really seen a lot of things change. My parents passed away, I have always lived with them and with suddenly both of them gone… and then about two years ago I got married. And that has brought so many beautiful changes that I feel like I have taken a 360 degree change where life is concerned.
Not just personally, seeing the way the film industry is going – there are films like NEERJA, KAPOOR AND SONS, now DANGAL – which tell you that there is a renaissance in the way we are making films, which is so wonderful. Perhaps that’s why you will be seeing a lot more of me. Because these are the kind of films I want to be associated with, these are my kind of cinema and not mere projects which will make big bucks at the box office.
