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'My friends who saw the film said, "My god, what a %$#@!*!" But there he is, his life laid open for you'

Rajat Kapur in The Making of the Mahatma. Click for bigger pic!

Rajat Kapur doesn't quite look the '90's hero -- he's not muscular, has those intense eyes, a weak chin, and a shock of curls reminiscent, of all Bollywood heroes, only of Sanjeev Kumar.

Thirty-four-year-old Rajat Kapur is not your idea of an actor, essentially because he lacks the vanity that sets the breed apart. Good-looking in an unconventional sort of manner, Kapur is rather happy it is his theatrics and not looks that he is noted for. A veteran of Bombay's stage, through his theatre company Rage, which he set up along with his friends to do meaningful theatre, Kapur is noted for works like Are there Tigers in the Congo?, Love Letters, Six Degrees of Separation etc.

Apart from which Byomkesh Bakshi, the tele-serial in which he etched the eponymous character almost a decade ago, is still recalled with delight. Recently of course, he tried his hand at playing M K Gandhi under the direction of Shyam Benegal, with mixed results. But there is more to the actor... As Saisuresh Sivaswamy found out during an interview.

For viewers who saw you playing Mohandas Karamchand Gandhi in The Making Of The Mahtama, it is rather funny to find you modeling for a fabric company.

Contrary to popular opinion, this is not the first product I have modelled for. I have so far done six ads over time... Hamam, Kelvinator, a mouthwash, E-Times, Elbee... That's about it. The OCM one is very well made, and as you say it is all over because it is being shown on all channels, unlike my previous ads. Apart from all this, the money is good, even though I don't find modelling stimulating?

But acting is stimulating?

Oh, it certainly is. Apart from The Making of The Mahtama, I have acted in around eight-nine films, like Suraj Ka Saatwan Ghoda and the more recent Sardari Begum. Yes, all of my films have a serious tag, but right now I am acting in an out-and-out commercial film called Ghulam along with Aamir Khan and Rani Mukherjee.

But was it a conscious choice to be rated as a serious actor? Why haven't your tried your hands at commercial cinema?

For me, more than the project, what is important is the stimulation. I have done around eight films so far, and the reason that there are no commercial films in them is because I have not been stimulated enough to do those kind of roles, not that I have anything against them.

Rajat Kapur with Amrish Puri Click for bigger pic!

Your are adept in all the three media, theatre, television and cinema. What do your consider your first love among them?

The first love out of the three suitors, both in terms of date as well as inclination, happens to be theatre. I had always been interested in acting, I was into acting in plays right from my school days. Naturally, when I joined up to do my B Com in Sydenham, I was part of the theatre group, and from there it was just a simple step.

You seem to be a regular with Shyam Benegal. Why is that?

For me, it is very important to relate to the person I am working for. We have to stimulate each other, have to motivate each other to give off one's best. I find that with Shyam Benegal, so we are working together.

As the first Indian to play the Mahatma on screen, how did you get to play the role?

Actually, I was to play a smoother role in the film, but Shyam -- I think it was after he saw my play Love Letters -- decided to cast me as Gandhi. No, I did not train specially for the role; the training was more mental. I did read My Experiments With Truth, considered his autobiography. And no, nor will I go around talking about the deep impact the role left in me, I did not turn vegetarian or any such thing after playing Gandhi.

Still, it is a challenge to play the Father of the Nation? Would you consider that your dream role?

Well, it is in sense my dream role, in that it is very actor's dream to play a world-famous figure. But satisfaction-wise, I was more happy with my role in Suraj Ka Saatwan Ghoda, for there I had to create all the parameters myself while here everything was laid down for me. But it did certainly give me a deeper insight into the man. He did what he did at tremendous personal cost, and I think he was particularly harsh on his family, his son. In fact, my friends who saw the film said, 'My god, what a %$#@!*!' But there he is, his life laid open for you.

But despite everything, how is that you are still identified with the television role you must have played seven years ago, Byomkesh Bakshi?

Yes, you are right. Maybe for one, it is because that it caught people's fancy at a time when there were not to many channels clamouring for your attention, so people still remember it. And for another, that serial also had a second lease of life which was telecast not so long ago. So it has a greater recall value with the audiences.

From stage to television to cinema, where do you go next? Is there any new peak you are looking to conquer?

Rajat Kapur with Padmini Kolhapure. Click for bigger pic!

Yes, recently I decided to turn producer, and work on my film is going on.

Surprised? Production has always been part of me, right from the theatre days, and I have always wanted to turn one. So recently I set up Saaransh Productions and am doing this film. We got Nasseruddin Shah interested in the film, as well as Pallavi. Vivek Agnihotri, with whom I vibe very well, will be directing the film, and we have recorded the first song. The music is composed by Salil Chowdhary's son Sanjoy, and I star in the protagonist's role. The film should hopefully go on the floors in the next few months or so, and the script is being reworked.

I don't know whether to call it a serious film or commercial film. We want to make a good film. We want to market it well, we don't want to make a film that lies in the cans, that no one gets to see. It's big film, not a small film.... It's going to be an uphill task, I know, but there is no looking back. I was also not satisfied with the possibilities of the kind of work that I was doing on film.

I said it's better to get down to it yourself. The same with theatre. Beyond a certain point when we felt that this is the kind of theatre that needs to be done and because there were six of us together, we said, all right, we think that is all there to it and we will form our own group. It is a similar kind of thought that kind of goaded me into getting into film production.

There has to be a certain amount of dependency of support, and my friends are being very, very supportive. And I had a creative anchor like Sunil, We complement and stimulate each other. I had a very good backup and support in my colleagues. These things also depend on whether you are able to motivate your friends.

Is film production where you want to go, your goal?

I guess so. For the time being it seems to be the most important thing. It's not that one wants to do away with acting. No. That's part of one.

What about funding, which seems to be in the news these days.

Yes, that is a major problem, and we are tackling that too.

What else is there to your life, apart from films, theatre and now production?

I am also involved with the administration and management of a garment export company. I have been doing that for 10 years, So that is also part of my system.

Rajat Kapur in The Making of the Mahatma. Click for bigger pic!

Are you good at time planning in your life?

Time planning? It doesn't always work out the way you want it to, but you have to make the effort, otherwise... And you can't complain when it doesn't work out that way because it is nobody else's choice. I can't crib about the irregular hours or long hour because I made the choices.

How long have you been acting?

Acting is my profession since I have been acting right from school and in college through performing arts. I headed the dramatics society in college, did a lot of plays there. It was something I enjoyed, it was something I found stimulating, it was something that satisfied me creatively.

I also think what happens at that stage, when you are 15-16, a lot of appreciation and support from teachers and colleagues help. I think obviously the appreciation I must have received at that time must have been a charging factor responsible for stimulating me further.

You say you come from a business family. So did you face any opposition in your unusual career?

Yes, I have been through it, all the opposition. I guess that's part of it when you are moving away from what is expected of you. There's bound to be opposition. But there's no making any bones about where the heart lies.

What else is there to Rajat Kapur?

I am also patron of the Heart Foundation which is quite serious about working with heart patients. In October-November we are planning to hold a major auction of paintings by leading artists.

One recently also say you hosting a show on Star Plus on the eve of the golden jubilee of independence. Frankly, a rather pathetic show. How did that happen?

(Groans) Oh, it must have been that NFDC thing which they shot for 10 minutes. That was pathetic. It was a rush job. They came to my office and recorded this thing in two hours next door. They were rolling a paper before me and I was reading whatever was on it, and I had to pretend as though I was not looking at it but the camera. I am sure it wasn't my best because it was not done properly.

You also had a sad role in Train to Pakistan. Would you like to talk about it?

I would rather not talk about, it, I am very upset at it. It was not how the role was explained to me. but once I had committed myself to the project and discovered the truth for myself it was too late to pull out. But it does not mean that I am happy with what I did.