In conversation with Bollywood actor Kunal Kapoor

'Ketto,' we tell Kunal Kapoor, means 'have you heard' in Malayalam. "That's dramatic," he muses, 'can you hear what ae are saying?"

There is an 'other side' to Kunal Kapoor - a tech-entrepreneur; he talks about it, about NGOs, his new movie Veeram, and why he prefers to be choosy about films in an exclusive interview with City Times. Deepa Gauri writes
'Ketto,' we tell Kunal Kapoor, means 'have you heard' in Malayalam. "That's dramatic," he muses, 'can you hear what ae are saying?"
And there is a lot 'to hear' in what Kunal says - not just as an actor - but as a tech and social entrepreneur, who co-founded Ketto, 'Asia's largest crowdfunding platform.'
Kunal was in Dubai to promote his new film Veeram, made in English, Hindi, Tamil and its native Malayalam. Directed by National Award-winner Jayaraj, the film is an adaptation of William Shakespeare's Macbeth, set in the milieu of the fabled Vadakkan Pattu, the ballads of warriors from northern Kerala.
Kunal plays the role of Chanthu Chekavar, whose story could very well have been that of Macbeth, laced with deceit and hunger for power. Excerpts from an exclusive chat:
Your crowdfunding platform - which describes you as the 'very cool, very chiseled face as co-founder - won the Wharton India prize for best start-up last year. How did Ketto happen?
We started with a simple dream - to use technology to build a bridge between people that need help and people who can. In the last four and a half years, we raised over INR45 crore for different causes. Of that INR25 crore came this year itself; it has grown tremendously. It reinforces your faith in humanity that there are so many people out there who are willing to help complete strangers.
What prompted you to found it?
I was always drawn to social entrepreneurship. I used to work in the NGO space, and I came across several challenges. The first was the cost of fund raising: For every 100 rupees raised, only about 40 would go to those who need it. I also found the whole social space to have a lot of gravity - seriousness - and young people felt it was not for them. When I looked at the same space in the West, it was fun - with marathons, celebrities, garage sales, making cakes.I felt that was the culture we needed in India too.
Which NGOs were you associated with it? And how did working with NGOs happen?
Charity was part of our everyday life at home; my mother and grandfather instilled that in us. I used to work for Save the Children, Akshara and several small NGOs. When I became an actor, more people wanted me to be associated and I was happy doing so. I feel celebrities have a responsibility. If you can sell colas and cars, it is important to promote a good cause as well.
Did Rang De Basanti, with its social messaging, drive your involvement further?
I do not know if Rang De Basanti triggered it; very often, we mistake the character for the person. Film has that sort of impact. But a lot of people wanted me to be involved in social causes. The impact of the film was more external - to the world outside than within me.
Despite the success of the film, you chose to be extremely selective. Why was that?
I wasn't getting the sort of work I wanted. I believe in quality over quantity. Secondly, it was important for you to be happy doing a film. I came to movies after a lot of professions - and I didn't pursue them because I didn't find any joy in them. I found joy in movies, story-telling and acting.
But isn't that a luxury for most actors?
It is important to be seen and remembered but it is also important to have discretion especially if you from 'outside' the industry. People respect the fact that you know the sort of quality work you want to do. A director recently told me that he wanted to work with me because I have never been associated with anything frivolous.
It has been many years since Meenaxi (Kunal's debut, directed by the legendary MF Hussain). Were you disappointed when people do not see a movie for what it was but for what they wanted it to be?
I was disappointed when it was taken out on the third day because some religious group had a problem with a line in a song and Hussein saab was not ready to change it. But in movies, an actor is a very helpless piece in the whole puzzle. My choice is the choice of my roles; nothing else is in my control.
While you did just about 6 films in 7 years, you did three last year - including Dear Zindagi. Has the industry evolved where there is more space to get the roles you like?
I am not completely sure if the industry has evolved drastically; a lot of norms still exist. But what has happened is the arrival of young directors with ideas you can relate to. There is so much new content - and am even more excited about how the distribution system has changed.
That takes us to your love for technology. Would you consider crowdfunding a movie on Ketto?
I would love to do that; in fact, we did crowd fund a play.
Coming to Veeram, did you find it easier to do the role because you - as a fitness enthusiast - were also doing kalarippayattu (a form of martial art) earlier?
I used to do kalari as part of acting school but it was very different from the kalari in Veeram which involves different weapons that I have not trained with. It helped that I was fit but I was required to change physically for the character. I had to put on 13-14 kg of muscle to look physically intimidating.
Wasn't filming challenging - as you had to do in three languages - and Malayalam is not a language that flows easily for non-Keralites?
It was because you had to do the same scene thrice in the different languages. And the nuances of acting in each language is different. We were shooting about 20 hours a day for 40 days and I had to break my work-out into three parts - 20 minutes in the morning, at lunch-time and after work. And then we had to be up early for make-up - and the only way to stay awake was have blaring heavy metal in the background; it was such a contrast - wearing traditional 16^th century make-up against heavy metal music.
Did your theatre background help while working on Veeram?
I have always been a big fan of Shakespeare and when you study Shakespeare, you tend to read about the subtext, the rhythm, the pentameter. Having said that, Macbeth is a challenging role. He starts of as a very honourable warrior who gets seduced by power, greed and fear, and becomes a ruthless tyrant. That is a huge journey of transformation.
Did that affect you as a person - with the intense emotional graph demanded by the role?
Macbeth takes you to the darker places of your being, which we all have in our lives and we all consciously avoid. It did not scar me or have an emotional hangover. But when you play it, you dig into a lot more to bring in relatability to the character.
Do you think all that effort has been rewarding?
As an actor, you are helpless about the outcome or how audiences react. What is important is that you enjoy the process - and you feel the reward by the process. For me, that process has been very rewarding.
 
 

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