“It’s difficult to fi original and su

Actor Harsh Varrdhan Kapoor on w Thar could be a game-chan

Actor Harsh Varrdhan Kapoor is teaming up with his illustrious father Anil Kapoor for the second time after black comedy AK vs AK, in Netflix’s gritty revenge thriller Thar. Harsh Varrdhan, known for offbeat choices like the Ray anthology and vigilante flick Bhavesh Joshi Superhero, hopes to draw in a discerning audience for Thar, which is inspired by Wes genres and set in a village in 80 han.

The intense trailer for Thar sho Surekha Singh (Anil Kapoor), inve a series of brutal deaths and Hars han as an antiques dealer, Siddha comes under his radar. Other ca bers include Dangal star Fatim Sheikh and the immensely talent Kaushik as Surekha Singh’s sidek stark and barren landscape of a de an apt tone for a riveting mystery w the main characters seem to hav thing to hide.

We caught up with Harsh V (who also turns producer with Tha phone to get some insight into the of what seems like a very unconv film by Bollywood standards.

You promise a visual experie like any other in Thar. What se apart from something we’ve s fore?

The tone, mood and atmosphe film are quite unique. I think tha probably worth looking forward t interesting combination of the ver world it is set in, and a narrative ered characters.

Thar is tagged as a gritty thr spired by Western noir. Wh you to this particular script?

I think the opportunity to d thing new and exciting. It’s difficu something original and subversiv compromising in its vision. If you to go out and make a movie like th be kind of fresh when it comes out it’s not your typical Bollywood film

The film is set in the desert an suals in the trailer are very st even kind of forbidding. What challenge of shooting in thes tions?

The landscape plays a very im role in terms of setting the mood narrative to kind of unfold, and symbolic for the characters’ state it’s not just there for beauty’s sake a lot of visual symbolism — the bu cass in the trailer for example, and that. All of that is there for a reaso never really seen locations like thi

It was very hard logistically — tw

and a half hour travels to the location, unpredictable weather conditions. It was hard to go there itself, and then to take the crew and equipment there…

But eventually we wanted (the director) Raj Singh Chaudhary’s vision to come to life and this is what good producers do; we give the directors what they want.

What can you tell us about your character, Siddharth?

I can’t talk too much about the character to be honest, because it’s not a plotdriven film; it’s a character-driven film, so if I take you into the depths of the character and who he is really, then I’d be giving away too much.

But what I can say is that it is difficult to engage an audience when they don’t understand your character’s motive. In traditional films, you know exactly why somebody is doing what they are doing.

What I found most interesting about Thar and I hope the audience kind of picks up on it is, sometimes it’s nice to not know; sometimes it’s good to pose a question to the viewer, for them to make up their minds.

I think it’s just two actors individually trying to do their best.” On working with dad Anil Kapoor in Thar

cop Surekha Singh in Thar was pitched to him by you. Did you have much convincing to do, to get him to do it?

It wasn’t easy; we kind of went out there, did a test shoot… he had read the script a long time ago, but to get him on board took quite a long time actually.

You’ve worked together earlier on AK vs AK. Does the fact that you’re father and son bring something new to the table?

Not really. I think it’s just two actors individually trying to do their best; I don’t really think it’s deeper than that, to be honest!

Did you give each other advice or critique each other’s work while working together?

Not really. I think that is something that happens either pre or post (the film). It’s kind of unprofessional to share your opinion on somebody else’s work on set.

You’ve also turned producer with Thar. What challenges and rewards did that added role bring?

I did it because Raj is a new director. Here was a first-time filmmaker whose vision was quite large, and also very subversive at the same time. In a situation like that, sometimes you have people who come in and say, change this, or do this, or make this character like this, so that it’s easier to sell the film, you know?

But I didn’t want that to happen, and he and I really kind of aligned on the way that we wanted the film to eventually turn out. So it’s just something that happened whereby we became a team, and it kind of went from there.

Are you glad Thar is getting an OTT release? When you work for OTT is there more creative freedom as to the content and execution of the project?

Absolutely! Number one, the box office these days is so unpredictable. Number two — we haven’t had to change the film in any way, shape or form to cater to a larger audience. Number three, we are a lot more flexible in terms of (scenes of) violence, sex… and you don’t really have to think about the censor board. Because (with) the censor board… one day you can do something, and the other day you can’t do it.

Plus, the barometer for success here is a bit different, right? It becomes about the merit of the film and not about the collections. Which is also great, because I feel like Thar is a film that is really new in a lot of ways and might take some time to find an audience!

I’m hoping it happens right away; it’s a very well put together film, it’s technically very sound… and it’s exciting to see it reach out to a global subscriber base. I know for sure there is an audience for Thar; I just don’t know where it is.

Whether it’s Mirzya, Bhavesh Joshi or the anthology Ray you seem to pick and choose unconventional scripts. What is it that draws you to a particular story?

The opportunity to do something original, unique and authentic that is a personal extension of myself. And also to be a part of something where the director has something to say. You can’t really compare these films (that I’ve done) — for better or worse — to too much that’s out there and I find that very exciting. To able to do consistently do unique pieces of work is a rush for sure.

Thar streams from May 6 on Netflix.