Working with Majid Majidi was a dream come true for Ishaan Khatter, says R Palisetty
Ishaan Khatter was at a grocery store (yes he does his own chores) when he received a phone call — the one he will cherish forever. On the line was Honey Trehan asking him for a meeting. Shortly after the call, the actor went to his office where he was told about a film being directed by Majid Majidi. “I was quite awe-struck. I think he had seen my pictures with the rest of his team already and thought that my face fit the character. I met Majidi where he asked me basic questions. He deduced what he needed to from my answers. That’s his level of understanding.”
Ishaan was given a brief about the character and the audition happened in live locations where he performed two scenes. The shooting went on till noon. The next day, Trehan was meant to edit the footage into a short clipping for the director but Majidi ended up seeing the whole footage and he was selected for the role of Amir in Beyond the Clouds immediately. The movie revolves around siblings who watch out for each other. Ishaan’s character is a small-time drug peddler who was brought up by Tara essayed by Malavika Mohanan after the death of his parents.
The actor spent some time at shooting locations like Dharavi and Koliwada, exploring and interacting with the locals to understand the character of Amir. The cast members, who were from Dharavi, became good pals and the actor would have conversations with them about their lives and their experiences. One of the cast members has the same trajectory as the character portrayed in the film and it helped the actor understand the character better. “I feel Amir stems from him and is an extension of him. So to understand him as a person was like understanding the character better.”
As far as his expectations were concerned, he never thought he would work with Majidi. “Before the film was made, about two years ago, I wished that I could work with Majidi and I shared this thought with my mom during a conversation. But even in my wildest imagination, I never expected that I would debut in his film. I am grateful for this opportunity and I am unable to believe my luck that my wish actually came true.”
Beyond the Clouds is an intense film and from the looks of the trailer, it seems emotionally challenging to portray the characters on screen. “It is a deep and poignant story and it is wonderful to be a part of a beautifully etched out and well-written film. There are moments in the film which were emotionally draining to perform but at the same time, they were extremely cathartic in nature. As an individual, I feel lighter after having performed such scenes. I feel like the preparations for those scenes was much more draining than the performance itself.”
To get into the mould of the character, the actor had to go through a physically grueling process. “One of the key requirements for the role was to lose a lot of weight because I had to look scrawny and malnourished. I think it was difficult as a short span of time was given to achieve it. Since, the script is very well-defined on paper, to understand the complexities was important and it took that much more work to fully imbibe the personality of the character.”
The character of Amir has brought about quite a few changes in the actor’s life. Ishaan was eager to play the role as he was able to relate to a lot of the underlying emotions. “After the shooting of this film, I have gained a lot of confidence but the biggest learning has been that the values I have as an individual have been reassured. It feels like I have gotten a stamp from Majidi that the path I am on and the way I think is right and I should never let it go.”
Each and every director has a different approach to train and guide the cast and crew for the perfect scene. Majidi, a well-known Iranian director recognised globally for his creativity, has no hard and fast rule. “At times, he gets frustrated and during certain scenes, he loses his temper but on rare occasions, he patiently tried to brief us and gave us ample time to get the performance right. The process keeps on changing depending on the location and the kind of scenes that are being shot.” As an actor, Ishaan is quite intrigued as he never got habituated to Majidi’s approach because of the unpredictability associated with it. Each day, the director had a different persona and he kept the actors alert and on their toes.
As he is making his debut in Bollywood films, the actor has received unconditional support from his brother, Shahid Kapoor and his mother. “Since my childhood days, he has always been there for me as an elder brother. On the professional front, he keeps sharing his experiences.”
Watching my brother’s reaction after the screening of the film was a satisfying experience. “Even though my mother had watched the film during one of the screenings, my brother hadn’t for quite a long time. He was growing curious since he was clueless about the narrative and hadn’t visited me on sets. When he saw the film, his first reaction was of immense relief. He was happy and expressed his feelings by hugging me. Afterwards, he called me over to his house and used a lot of superlatives for my performance. I believe he loved my film and it was reflected in his behaviour.”
He is new to acting but he already has a quite a few role models who inspire and encourage him to do better. “If I had to pick one, it will have to be my brother because personally, I have learnt a lot from him. I have seen him shooting on sets of his films which helped me learn about the profession.”
Other than his brother, Ishaan is inspired by actors and individuals outside the film fraternity. “Across the world, we have so many actors with ample talent who are not very well-known but their work speaks volumes.Their craft is impeccable. There are also those actors who shine in one film but somehow they are unable to achieve the same performance peak in their next. The actors who consistently work hard and improve with every performance are the ones that deeply inspire me. During the golden age of Hindi cinema, actors like Dilip Kumar and Rajesh Khanna were masters of their craft and I watch their films quite often.”
After working with the Iranian director, the actor will be exposed to global filmmakers and it might fetch him Hollywood films as well. “I have no control over these things but with the knowledge I have, I can say it is a film that will be followed very closely by cinema-goers all over the world.” Since the bar has been raised so high with his debut film, it will be followed by huge expectations from the audience as well as critics but Ishaan is unfazed by it. “I would imagine that people would want a certain quality of work to be repeated and outdone but that’s how one grows as an artist. That is what I would strive towards as well.”