In Custody

ZAHAN KAPOOR AS ASP SUNIL KUMAR GUPTA IN THE WEB SERIES BLACK WARRANT IS ALL ABOUT SOFT POWER, WRITES FARHANA FAROOK

- FARHANA FAROOK

HIS GENE POOL IS THE CREAM OF THE CROP. HE'S THE SON OF KUNAL KAPOOR AND GRANDSON OF LEGENDARY ACTOR SHASHI KAPOOR AND FOUNDER OF PRITHVI THEATRE JENNIFER KENDAL. He's witnessed a world that serenades both the screen and the stage. That he's the maternal grandson of filmmaker Ramesh Sippy is a distinctive add-on. Betraying the striking looks of his clan, Zahan insists he's an 'offbeat' Kapoor. Mild-mannered and low-key, he credits art, culture, music, photography, polo, travel... apart from theatre for shaping his persona. Intricately engaged with Prithvi Theatre, Zahan debuted on stage with the play Pitaji Please. Hansal Mehta's acclaimed film Faraaz (2022), based on the July 2016 terrorist attack in Dhaka, was his screen unveiling. What left audiences in 'shock and awe' is Zahan's recent reprisal of ASP Sunil Kumar Gupta in the series Black Warrant. Created by Vikramaditya Motwane and Satyanshu Singh, the crime thriller is based on Sunil Gupta and Sunetra Choudhary's non-fiction book, Black Warrant: Confessions of a Tihar Jailer. Set in the '80s, the infamous Tihar is rocked by gang wars and ruled by criminals, when novice Sunil Gupta is auditioned for the post. Sunil, though seemingly inadequate with his slight frame and textbook idealism, soon swings his softness into strength. He retains his humanity in a world, which has forgotten to be human. Initially, Sunil needs the job. Towards the end of the series, the job needs Sunil. Zahan's authenticity as an actor lies in changing the dynamic... Excerpts:

YOU ONCE MENTIONED YOU'RE AN 'OFFBEAT' KAPOOR. WHY?

I didn't grow up with my parents actively working in the industry. Papa was an ad filmmaker. He did a few films like Vijeta, Utsav and Trikal in the '80s. But I wasn't born then. Mom (Sheena Sippy) is a photographer, creative and adventurous. I grew up in the lap of theatre and did Makarand Deshpande's plays like Pitaji Please and