Kunal Kapoor on returning to screen with Jewel Thief: 'It's great fun to be filmy again'

Kunal Kapoor is making a triumphant comeback to the screen after a four-year hiatus, eagerly embracing the thrilling genre of heist thrillers. The part that catapulted the actor to fame was Rang De Basanti (2006), but he has subsequently established himself with more realistic roles. In the forthcoming Netflix original Jewel Thief (co-directed by Robbie Grewal and Kookie Gulati), Kunal is letting his hair down and embracing a more "filmy" attitude.

Fresh role for Kunal Kapoor

The stylish heist thriller was produced by Marflix Pictures, which is headed by Siddharth Anand. It features Saif Ali Khan, Jaideep Ahlawat, and Nikita Dutta, among others. The role of police officer in the film was a welcome change of pace for Kapoor.

In an interview with MidDay, the actor said that these movies with so much conversation were his childhood favourites. Given that all his previous films have been more grounded and understated, he finds this role to be incredibly enjoyable. Kapoor could be himself and grounded while still having a blast with this opportunity. He actually would love to do more of it.

Kunal Kapoor on crafting an entertaining thriller

Kapoor acknowledges that commercial entertainers present a distinct challenge—one that spectators frequently fail to recognise, even if he evidently loved the experience. Making a serious film is supposedly difficult. Creating an engaging film, particularly a suspenseful one, is, in his opinion, an even greater challenge. Mastering the art of captivating an audience is no simple feat. As an actor making a long-awaited comeback to film, he stresses the importance of collaborating with talented individuals.

Kapoor (watch his short film White Shirt) admits that he took a break from the limelight not because he wanted to, but because the offers he received were unimpressive. His ideal environment would be a film set. Nevertheless, what lay ahead did not inspire any enthusiasm. Therefore, disinterest was not the reason for the pause. The actor was able to spend some quality time during the break working on projects that bring him delight, like working with the writers' room to generate screenplays that he would like to star in or produce. Additionally, he was able to spend a wonderful deal of quality time with his three-year-old son because of this. That being said, he does admit that there was one upside to not receiving the appropriate scripts.

Balancing act for Kunal Kapoor

Kapoor is now resuming his acting career while simultaneously pursuing other artistic endeavours behind the scenes. Finding a happy medium between his career and parental responsibilities, he is active in both the writing and production of scripts.

When Jewel Thief is over, Kapoor has promising projects ahead of him. His upcoming film Vishwambhara features Chiranjeevi. He will also play the role of Indra Dev in the ambitious Ramayana directed by Nitesh Tiwari. Also coming out this year from Kapoor and Aamir Khan Productions is an untitled production.