It’s a role that has given him a lot of eyeballs and also showcased his ability to stand out in an ensemble cast. This Friday, Sikandar Kher returns as the strong and silent Daulat — the pillar to Sushmita Sen’s Aarya — in Season 2 of Aarya. Before edition two of the family-cum-crime show drops on Disney+Hotstar, t2 caught up with Sikandar for a chat on being Daulat, why he has a natural flair for comedy and what he admires the most about his actor-parents Anupam and Kirron Kher...
If the trailer of Aarya Season 2 is anything to go by, it seems like you have a winner already, much like Season 1...
I sure hope so! We have been very lucky to have that kind of response where people have been asking, ‘When is the second season coming?’ And now, finally it’s here this Friday. I am really happy to be part of a show like this.
In hindsight, did the overwhelming response to the first season surprise you?
It did. I hadn’t expected it at all. It was truly something that had happened to me for the first time. So I was like, ‘Oh my God! Okay, aise hota hain? Okay, okay... chalo achhi baat hain’ (laughs). People showed a lot of love for my character Daulat and for the show. It was something I had not experienced before, it was really very overwhelming for me.
You have said that much of Daulat is different from who you are. Are there any common threads?
His calmness. He’s a very calm guy. On some level, I think I am also getting calmer with each passing year. I think age has a lot to do with it! (Laughs) Otherwise, I am someone who has a lot of energy and I constantly have to figure out ways to spend it. Usually, it comes out in the characters that I play. I am predominantly an actor because I love being on set and I am full of energy over there.
Daulat is a great guy. When I speak about him, it feels like I am talking about someone else and not me... but then again, I know him well. He’s someone I have built in my head and hence I know what he will do and what he won’t. He’s a really solid person. He’s made mistakes, of course... everyone makes mistakes, and that’s also something that is common between us (smiles). He’s made mistakes but he’s also sorry about it.
Daulat is a man known for his silences. And I know you love talking!
(Laughs) I do... quite a bit! Before Daulat, I had never played a character who had to be largely quiet in the frame and just emote with his being. He’s one of the toughest characters I have played. Which is also very exciting about the whole process of being Daulat.
Playing Daulat has made me think a little extra than what I have done for the characters I have played so far. My mind is constantly ticking when I play him... it’s not just about standing there quietly... there’s a lot more about it. I have to work on making Daulat’s silence interesting. It’s always tough to play him. But it’s a good kind of tough. It keeps me on my toes and keeps me excited.
Sikandar with parents Anupam and Kirron Kher
Director Ram Madhvani has spoken at length about the 360-degree approach that he takes while shooting. What’s that experience been like?
On both seasons of Aarya, we have done long takes that have lasted an hour. The battery and the memory card of the camera used to change in the middle of the take! It’s Ram’s language of film-making. I have not heard of anyone shooting like this, and it’s kind of amazing. That was something that initially got me pretty nervous. As actors, we are used to ‘Action’ and ‘Cut’ , cut to this shot and cut to that shot... so this was very new and quite a ride for every actor. I feel many actors, in the future, will come out with their best work with Ram just because of this process.
On his set, all you have to do as an actor is know your character very well. All the other work of capturing what is needed in a scene is done by Ram and the process that he follows. The kind of planning that Ram does for every scene is crazy, but everyone is on the same page. What he and his team does with the actors is nothing short of how one would draw up a floor plan. We are told the exact places where we have to stand and in what direction we have to move.
In Season 1, the shaadi scene was filmed as a real shaadi. There was no ‘cut’ or anything. We were divided into zones, the cameras kept moving, we got about five takes and the whole scene was filmed in two days.
Do you also prep a lot as an actor?
I haven’t studied acting, so whatever I know I have learnt on set. I try and learn all the time, my mind is constantly ticking. I am always thinking about acting, about my characters.... But it’s not that when ‘Action’ is called, I suddenly jump into character. The work I put in before is very different. I try and understand the character... the process also involves the director understanding me and me understanding him. And, as I said, I always like to learn. So when I watch a film, I try and think how an actor would have played a character, what he must have gone through while figuring this out and that out....
For me, acting is about trial and error. I am not afraid to make a fool of myself. I like to think outside of the box and go that extra mile. I don’t sit and Instagram on set... I will be constantly thinking about what I have to do in the next scene.
You just said that you aren’t afraid to make a fool of yourself as long as that improves your craft. Has this always been your approach?
I have evolved to this, to be honest. I am naturally an extrovert and so I don’t find it tough to put myself out there. In my first two films, I find my performances to be not bad. But then after that, the next few films I did, I really didn’t like myself in them. And then, I played a character in Tere Bin Laden: Dead or Alive where I played a white man who becomes a brown man... now that’s a crazy character to play! (Laughs) I had to really let go to be able to play this man.
When it comes to being an actor, I have never taken pressure because I am not a superstar who has to shoulder the responsibility of a film. It’s quite scary to even think about that. I am lucky I have work and I am lucky to be acting.
You did very well in that comic role in Tere Bin Laden and during the lockdown last year, those short Instagram videos you put up with your dad were hilarious. We would love to see you doing more comedy...
It’s not like I have a 100 scripts to choose from. But I love comedy, and I am trying to do some things for myself. I am hoping to do more comedy.
Both your parents are superlative actors. If you could, what would you imbibe from them as actors?
What I have learnt from both of them is their complete respect for the craft and for the work that they do. They don’t take anything for granted. Their passion drives them, and my passion drives me. This is not a place that’s made for you if you don’t have that burning passion in you.
From my father, I would love to inherit his capability to do a wide range of roles. Almost at the same time, he played diverse roles in films like Chaalbaaz and Daddy. He’s balanced a Saaransh with a Shola Aur Shabnam and a Lamhe with a Karma. He’s also gone and worked abroad, his range is phenomenal.
My mother brings pure joy and charm to the screen. She started late as an actor, but she’s excelled in every role. She just lights up the screen, and it comes from within her. She’s just kadak!