Lootere actor Rajat Kapoor: ‘I am a very submissive actor; I don’t go against my directors’

Actor Rajat Kapoor and director Hansal Mehta have known each other for more than two decades but the duo worked together for the first time in 2020’s mega-hit series Scam 1992. Although Kapoor had a small but impactful role as a CBI officer, the Kapoor & Sons actor thoroughly enjoyed the experience. Hansal’s son Jai Mehta was an Assistant Director on the series and Kapoor got to know his craft as well.

His working experience with the Mehtas is one of the primary reasons that he agreed to become a part of Disney + Hotstar’s Lootere. While Hansal is the showrunner for the gripping pirate drama, his son Jai has made his debut as a director with the eight-episode series, two of which have dropped on the OTT platform and will see a new episode every Thursday. As the ship’s captain, Kapoor has the responsibility to ensure his crew’s safety when Somali pirates hijack their cargo ship.

A still from the show Lootere.

“Firstly, I thought it was a very well-written script and my part had a lot of meat in it. I entered the script with some idea of an honest officer. Then you emote according to the situations the script offers you and try to bring some truth to the moment,” says the actor. Although many portions of the show were shot in Africa, Kapoor says that almost 95 per cent of his work was on the ship. “It was my first time on a ship and the first thing that strikes you is how small the damn thing is! The rooms, alleyways and passages are so narrow. More than our movements, it restricts possibilities for the directors and cameraman and at the same time, any limitation becomes an advantage because you have to work within it by creating a new language and innovative ways of dealing with it,” he shares.

Kapoor, who is also a filmmaker and has directed movies such as the critically-acclaimed Ankhon Dekhi (2014) and RK/RKay (2022) says that he does not like to interfere with another director’s vision when he is working as an actor in their projects. “I leave my director’s hat at home then; any suggestions I would make on the sets are suggestions an actor should make. It is up to the director to choose. I am a very submissive actor. I don’t go against my directors,” he says, adding that he is very impressed with the debut director’s work. “Jai is a phenomenal guy. It is his first project and hats off to him for pulling it off!” he says. Kapoor’s upcoming projects as an actor include a couple of shows. “I directed a whodunit last year called Everybody Loves Sohrab Handa and it should hopefully release this year,” he says.

Deepali Singh is a Mumbai-based freelance journalist who writes on movies, shows, music, art, and food. Twitter: @DeepaliSingh05

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