When Mira Nair came to Mumbai last year for the shoot of A Suitable Boy, there were two things she was looking forward to—guava ice cream with chilli powder and Ishaan Khatter’s acting. The young actor, who was selected to play Maan Kapoor in the six-part BBC miniseries, jumped in joy when he heard that. It was one of the biggest compliments he would get as an actor.
In Vikram Seth’s eponymous novel, if a character could be described as unsuitable, yet fascinating, it has to be Maan. The novel, set in the 1950s, revolves around the hunt for a suitable boy for college-going Lata. But it also captures the essence of newly independent India and the burgeoning hate for Islam in pockets. In the midst of all this, Maan—the younger son of India’s revenue minister Mahesh Kapoor and brother-in-law of Lata’s elder sister Savita—is full of dichotomies.
His friendship with Firoze, and his fascination and later romance with a Muslim courtesan—Saeeda Bai (played by Tabu in the show)—almost double his age marks him as unconventional. But, “it is just so true and honest”, says Ishaan, who was thrilled to be cast opposite Tabu. “Mira di has given me an opportunity to play this kaleidoscopic character,” says Ishaan over the phone. “Certain times you are attracted to a character for a certain quality. Maan was an all-encompassing character, with many elements and dimensions. That makes him the most unpredictable character for me. He is functioning on his own rhythm. He is the non-conformist of his family. His flaws make him interesting.”
But there were certain things about Maan that took him completely by surprise. “I come from a family of artists, politics is the farthest from my reach,” he says. “My childhood has been full of cultural arts, literature, films and music. To play the son of a minister and to understand that background was important, but what fascinated me the most was that he is not as much a result of his background as he is of his own individuality and curiosity. His actions directly affect everyone around him, but he does them because he has to follow his truth.”
Son of actors Neelima Azeem and Rajesh Khatter, and half-brother of Shahid Kapoor, Ishaan made his acting debut in 2018 with Majid Majidi’s Beyond The Clouds; he played a drug-peddler from an impoverished background. He considers Majidi a father figure, “a spiritual saint who taught me so much and set me on a journey for which I will always be indebted to him”. His second film, Dhadak (2018), was the Hindi remake of Marathi film Sairat. Though it was panned by critics, Dhadak did steady business.
Ishaan’s background in syncretism (combination of different forms of belief or practice) often plays a role in him seeing a character’s innate characteristics through a finer lens. “Maybe that is why I was able to see certain elements in Maan,” he says. “That is, of course, the result of the upbringing that I have had and the life that I have lived. I have been able to see so many shades and so many sides of life, and have had varied influences from a rather young age. That directly contributes to the actor that I am.”
Alongside A Suitable Boy, which is scheduled to stream soon on Netflix in India, he was also shooting for Khaali Peeli, a romantic drama directed by Maqbool Khan. It is an out-and-out Bollywood affair that would see him as a typical Hindi film hero.
Juggling an international career along with mainstream Hindi films could overwhelm many. But Ishaan says it is no big deal. “My job is the same, to act,” he says. “I have been lucky enough to have these opportunities where people can see me on different platforms. I think it is because of the diversity of my first two films that people can imagine me in different roles. I am grateful for it.” The challenge in managing the two different worlds, however, was more practical, he says, like juggling the shooting schedules of the two projects and achieving the look for the different characters in a short span of time.
He is looking forward to Khaali Peeli; its shoot was stalled because of the pandemic. He also has another project to look forward to, a horror comedy—Phone Bhoot—co-starring Siddhant Chaturvedi and Katrina Kaif. The film’s announcement came at a time when nepotism was being widely discussed on social media. Ishaan had to bear the consequences. “I think we are living in unprecedented times that is leading to a hostile climate, at least on social media,” he says. “Social media has become largely toxic; kind of a weird place, going against what it could have done [positively] for society and the world. But I think, for me personally, being a part of the film industry has only helped me grow.”
However, one thing that Ishaan is certain about is that to be an actor, empathy is important and the world, he feels, is functioning in a way which is opposite to that. That pains him, but he is trying to understand life, one day at a time.