All eyes are on this  Kapoor kid who has just made his big debut with Rakeysh Om Prakash Mehra’s Mirzya. Harshavardhan Kapoor, son of Anil Kapoor and the younger brother of Sonam Kapoor is all set for his career to take off.  He has Anil Kapoor’s flamboyance and his sister Sonam’s chutzpah.  Born and brought up in the Juhu environs of Mumbai he has an air about himself which is hard to decode.  He talks about Bollywood debut and his films.

Tell us about Mirzya?

Mirzya  is about two different eras – one role is that of Mirzya who is a warrior and is flamboyant while the second role is about Aamir a boy who is on his way to become a man.  Aamir is very suppressed man, he vents out his frustrations by constantly doing manual labour and playing a game with horses.

Do you suppress your instincts in real life too?

Unlike my character in the film, I  cannot suppress my  instincts, I vent it out in my acting or else I will never be happy.

Your dad and Sonam are very frank with their opinions?

No my dad is quite diplomatic and Sonam is quite open about her emotions and feelings.

Why should one watch Mrizya?

It’s an emotional film and very beautifully done. I request the audience to give us a chance since it’s our debut film.  It’s meant to be seen on big screen, it’s a visual audio film and there are elements you will be taking away from it.  It’s a romantic film. If you give it a chance you will not be left empty handed.

Was it Rakeysh Mehra’s Delhi 6 that made you take up this film?

When I saw Delhi6, I was blown by it. I met Mehra during Delhi 6. I watched the film when I was 18 and when I was in Los Angeles.  At that point I thought I would at some point  work with Mehra.

Are you open for brickbats and bouquets that are going to come your way?

I am  not afraid of the comparisons or the competition. I am just stepping into my profession hence I want to be left alone in my creative bubble am not bothered.  I believe that  the numbers take away your creative ability.  I know in my heart they are waiting for something new. I am not meaning it in a contrived way. I have faith in my director and the Indian audiences.

Heard that you have done a screenplay writing course in the US?

I did a B.A. in screenplay writing in Los Angeles and in that (subject) After one year of workshop in America and  I came back and I met director Anand Gandhi (of Ship of Thesus fame)  and he put me onto theatre actor Alok from Dehradun and he made me participate in workshops. New actors from NSD would come and we would do a three months workshop.  I also assisted  casting director  Mukesh Chaabra and worked on Bombay Velvet as an AD but I didn’t enjoy it. The wall of Anurag Kashyap’s and Mukesh  Chhabra’s office  was the same so I would go there often. I would read a lot of scripts during the auditions. After that I worked with a  person called Bertina Johnson from South Africa and I learnt method acting. Alok and Mukesh taught me voice exercises and modulation. Her method was  methodical.  My dream is to write and direct a film someday.

Did you ever visit dad’s sets as a kid?

I don’t remember as a kid but when I was 8 I remember going on David Dhawan’s Deewana Mastana and Raj Kumar Santoshi’s Pukar.

Heard you moved out of your parents home to get a feel of your character in your next film, Bhavesh Joshi?

It was necessary to move out of the house as it’s a buddy film and I need to go through the process of bonding and understanding of living alone in Mumbai. My mom didn’t want me to move out but dad said it’s okay.

Tell us about your brothers Arjun and Ranveer?

I have a great rapport with Arjun he’s very respectful. I have not interacted with Ranveer much.