As Shahid Kapoor gets ready to make his digital debut, he takes time off for a Q&A with Subhash K Jha

Farzi is your first foray into the OTT space. How would you describe the experience? Is it any different from doing films for the big screen?

I’m very excited to be doing my OTT debut, as everybody calls it. I think I did it because I love the directors Raj and DK and their work, and I actually really really liked the idea and the concept behind Farzi, the world of counterfeiting. I felt Sunny was a character that was as challenging as some of my most challenging characters as I’ve done yet. So I immediately wanted to do it.

And was it any different shooting for an OTT series?

Of course it’s different because you’re watching the character over five to six hours as opposed to maybe two to two and a half hours. So it’s a deeper, wider opportunity to bring a character to life, that’s it.

Farzi gave you the opportunity to work with the great Vijay Sethupathi and also the creators Raj and DK. So what was that experience like?

With Raj and DK, I’ve loved Family Man very much and we’ve met over time and always wanted to collaborate. So I was really looking forward to it. In fact, I asked them if they have a show because they were calling me for a movie because they didn’t really expect… they didn’t think after Kabir Singh, I’d like to do something like that, or whatever. But I actually asked them for it and probed for it, and then they actually told me about this concept which we had discussed as a movie earlier.

So why was the feature film converted into a digital series?

It was just too elaborate to turn into a movie, to fit into a movie. It was only extremely sensible of them to turn it into a show because it deserves that much screen time.

What was it like working with Vijay Sethupathi?

With Vijay sir, it’s been a pleasure. And I want to see how people receive the show. He’s a fantastic actor who has always rediscovered himself and given people completely different experiences when he has come on the big screen. So it’s a privilege to have him on the show. And I had a blast working with him.

Shahid, it’s been twenty years since you started as a leading man. How do you look back on your career so far?

I feel very fortunate to still be here. And I feel grateful that people find my work relevant. I feel there’s a lot more that I would like to do. And I think I am as charged as I was at the age of 21, giving my first shot, as I am today. And I think that’s the best part of the entire journey, that I still am as excited and as curious to get on that film floor and give my next shot. I think that’s what drives any artist.

Tell me about your forthcoming projects.

I’ve got Farzi coming out on 10 Feb. And then there’s a movie with Ali Abbas Zafar, which is an action thriller, a slick action fun film, which will come out in the middle of this year. And then there’s a high-concept quirky love story that I’m doing with Maddock Films, which is directed by a new director. His name is Amit Joshi. It has me and Kriti Sanon in it, and Dharam ji and Dimple ma’am and various other very talented people.