Star gaze
The guy next door (if only he were this good looking) with an unpretentious disposition and eyes to the stars, ADITYA ROY KAPUR is the reluctant actor who chooses craft over celebrity. In a candid interview with Chandni Sehgal, he talks about success, failure, and all things in between
Published in Vogue India (print issue), July 2019
Image: Vogue India July 2019 cover story
The guy next door (if only he were this good-looking) with an unpretentious disposition and eyes to the stars, Aditya Roy Kapur is the reluctant actor who choose craft over celebrity. In a candid interview, he talks about success, failure and all things in between
“I incrementally got famous” is how VJ turned actor Aditya Roy Kapur cautiously describes his star status after the release of the 2013 blockbuster Aashiqui 2. Till then, the TV personality and ensemble film actor was fairly ‘well known’ but it was the success of this tear fest that took him from being able to ‘vagabond’ on the streets of Mumbai to losing his anonymity.
Over a decade into show business, he speaks of the privileges of his fame in restrained manner—and in no time it’s clear that he’s a working actor who is here for the craft and not just the celebrity.
He breezes into our shoot, his movie star looks making it obvious as to why he first made it to silver screen. A thorough professional, he remains calm through the frenzy, glugging black coffee to battle post-work exhaustion when we sit down for our interview. As he recounts his fairly tumultuous movie career and talks candidly about his struggles, citing roles as “jobs” and professing an earnest desire to “stay employed” as his goal, it’s his disarmingly Everyman persona and surprising self-awareness that make him stand out from the crowd of all those other perfectly built leading men of Bollywood.
STEPPING STONE
“I started doing films because the opportunity presented itself; I didn’t actively go seeking it. Being a VJ is like being a heightened version of yourself, and it was a great experience but when acting happened I found it more rewarding because you get a chance to do different things—and you have an excuse for behaving the way you do,” he says. “Aashiqui 2 made its mark on me, and I felt like I had to be the character all the time, but now I’ve found a way of slipping in and out. Funnily enough, even though it’s been 10 years, I feel like there’s a lot I haven’t experimented with and I have a long way to go.”
His debut (2009’s London Dreams) came organically but he is cognizant of the fact that his starry profession is as tough as any other: “It’s been a bit of a roller coaster. I’ve had my ups and downs. Essentially, we’re going from job to job—and there are moments when you don’t know when the next one is coming. It’s unpredictable, too—you don’t know what will do well and what you won’t. In terms of failures, films are a collective process, so you can’t take full responsibility, but of course after every misstep there’s a certain amount of introspection and learning, and you have to learn to cope with that.”
In spite of the ‘ups and downs’, it was Aashiqui 2 and 2013’s Yeh Jawaani Hai Dewwani that propelled him to stardom. And Roy Kapur isn’t nonchalant about his rise—“I was at a bar the other day with a friend, and someone tapped me on the shoulder and said, ‘Hey man, I just think you’re amazing’—and these moments are to be valued. It made me realise how grateful I am for being so love, and while I do miss roaming the streets of Mumbai and doing what I want, the fan positivity, adulation and support is amazing.”
HEART AND SOUL
Success and star-struck fans notwithstanding, Roy Kapur has been picky with roles, turning to older brothers Siddharth (producer) and Kunaal Roy Kapur (actor/ director) for advice on occasion, and steering clear of projects that didn’t excite him, even if it meant two years between releases, and a year-long sabbatical ( “I did other things”). “I think I said no too much,” he laughs. “I feel like if you’re going to do something for six months, and you’re giving your everything to it, you have to be convinced. Having said that, I love being on set. I’m happiest there,” he says.
His measured modus operandi is to take it as it goes—work with interesting filmmakers and subjects and not be too cautious or planned about the results. It seems to have worked, as he enough in his kitty—Sadak 2, Malang and Anurag Basu’s next.
As we chat about his film trajectory and his fixed goals (or lackthereof), it’s clear he’s here to stay but Roy Kapur is in no hurry or pressing for fame. For now, he is sure he doesn’t have the “head for production” and he’s merely toyed with the idea of direction. “The more I work, the more I realise how tough directing a film is. There’s a lot I need to understand about making films before I could direct one.”
Roy Kapur speaks of his professional life with passion, yet a calm detachment filters through. He’s easy to talk to, and occasionally cracks jokes between shots. He is sharp-eyed, and upon seeing me doodle, confesses he’s a chronic doodler himself.
He’s also very relatable, just like the Everyman he portrays. Stalk him on Instagram, peppered with vignettes of his daily life, and you get insights on why he’s an all-round cool boy. His feed reveals he has indie rockers Arcade Fire on his playlist, a photo of Edvard Munch’s The Kiss confirms he’s not a philistine and his bedside read (the spiritual bible Autobiography of a Yogi) showcases that he has his heart and mind in the right place. You can’t miss a photo documenting his Goa adventure on a bike that hints at his knack for thrill, but what draws his 1.2 million followers of course are the shirtless, six-pack photo-ops on the beach and on a speedboat, all showcasing his love for travel. So at the end of the day, if there’s one thing you know about Aditya Roy Kapur, it’s that he may have had his head in the stars but the rest of him is very much down to earth.
