What gets someone who has followed Kapur’s journey since the early 1990s curious is: How does a gifted storyteller whose characters have stayed on in India’s collective memory manage to multitask, let his imagination run in five directions and yet focus on one thing—the second draft of the script for Paani, a feature film which Kapur conceived 15 years ago, and which, he says, is his “No. 1 priority right now”.
So, my next question to him is: What is the one sensibility or world view that defines Shekhar Kapur? “I have asked myself that question many times,” he says, then goes into a long pause (there were many in the two interviews). “This is a world that is increasingly exciting and increasingly allowing you opportunities and goading you to explore these opportunities. You can’t but be a multitasker. But ultimately, my core is that of an unquenchable, unstoppable storyteller. People are coming in to the fund because I’m telling them the story of the future, of Asia’s future creators, its technology and creativity. The story of reverse cultural colonization is my story, and it manifests itself in all my ideas.”
What he says takes me back to an interview that actor Cate Blanchett gave soon after Elizabeth: The Golden Age released. She had said: “This film is a bit of the colonies’ revenge, in that you’ve got an Indian director and two Australians portraying these incredibly iconic English figures. You can trample around in the concepts of what the monarchy is.” It doesn’t get more counter-colonial than that.
Sundown soothes the Marriott’s scorched pool area outside the café’s glass walls. The photography shoot with the aspiring star continues. The human chatter inside the café becomes more audible than in the afternoon, and as we order our second round of coffee, many drop by our table to say “hi” to Kapur—a fashion designer, actors, friends. The last one to come up is the brother of choreographer-turned-director Ahmed Khan, who directed Fool ‘n’ Final, a film starring Shahid Kapoor. Khan, Kapur later tells me, was one of the child actors in Mr India along with actor Aftab Shivdasani. “How is Ahmed?” the Mr India director asks the brother. “Ask him to drop by sometime.” The brother proudly informs Kapur that Khan is finishing his first feature for Yash Raj Films, enquires about Kapur’s last film (“What was it about?”; “We’re very proud of your Hollywood achievements”), and says bye.
This short encounter is a perfect transition to the world of his films—what made Kapur famous and what the world judges him by.
Kapur is known to be a finicky director who spends days rehearsing a scene and waiting for hours for the right frame and shot to materialize. Indian producers have often found that alarming, because, as Kapur himself says: “In India, labour and time is easily available and cheap, but film stock is very expensive. In the West, the material is cheap, but labour is respected and comes at a price. The manpower and talent get more respect.” His approach to directing, he says, is informed by his experiences as an actor: “Someone who knows exactly what he wants from a performance, but is compassionate and liberal enough to let actors develop their roles.”