‘I am an Actor who has been Moulded by Women’
Says Ishaan Khatter while talking about his latest film ‘The Royals’, which gave him a chance to exercise his dormant muscles as a performer
Ishaan Khatter is Bollywood’s current pin-up boy. He’s grabbing eyeballs for his lithe and toned physique and laid-back charm, and tabloids have called this the ‘Ishaan thirst trap era.’
Laughing at the many labels being attached to him, Ishaan says it is flattering, and if it translates into more work for him, he is all for it!
“I am happy with it, as long as it gets me more work. I am having fun with this specifically because this was not the kind of presentation I have ever been afforded before. There is truth in that the way you are presented creates an aura about and around you. I have never been given that kind of space. I am happy the hungry, greedy actor in me is getting this side to delve into as well.”
The actor, last seen in the Hollywood thriller The Perfect Couple, is gearing up to play ‘prince charming’ in the rom-com The Royals. He says he finally got to exercise unused muscles as a performer when it came to romance. “I did a tragic love story, Dhadak, in 2017, and after that I have never had the chance to be part of an out-and-out romantic project. This is a satire about modern royals. That apart, I was captivated by the inner world of the character I play, which comes with its layers,” says Ishaan.
The romantic genre has been experiencing a long winter on screens. Ishaan feels it is just a phase. “A lot of love stories have been made in the past; I think of late, there has been a dearth of ideas, maybe writers and creators felt they had nothing new to tell, or maybe the audiences had got bored with what they were being served. There has been a gap, and a long one, which is making people miss the genre. I hope there are more romantic films made.”
Aside from his tryst with the royal palace in the imaginary kingdom of Morpur, the actor also has a Cannes outing lined up, with his film Homebound. The Neeraj Ghaywan directorial, which also stars Janhvi Kapoor, will premiere in the Un Certain Regard section.
Ishaan credits the strong women in his life for the shaping his decade-long career. “More than 50 per cent of my collaborators in leading roles, as directors and writers, have always been women. I am an actor who has been moulded by women, and it makes my job easier, especially when one is playing rounded characters,” he shares.
