Is Ishaan Khatter doing this on purpose? He’s only 29. His acting career only goes back seven years. And yet, his resume packs more diversity than those who’ve been facing the camera for decades.

Khatter has worked with Karan Johar, Vishal Bhardwaj, legendary Iranian director Majid Majidi, and Hollywood actors Jennifer Lawrence and Nicole Kidman. He’s been in a period drama (A Suitable Boy), a black comedy (Don’t Look Up), a star-crossed romance (Dhadak), a masala blockbuster (Khaali Peeli) and a wartime biopic (Pippa). This year, with The Perfect Couple, he checked murder mystery series off his Bingo card – Oh, he definitely has one. Coming up next: The Royals, in which he plays a literal Prince Charming opposite Bhumi Pednekar.

The man refuses to be pigeonholed. “I try to pick roles that will keep me engaged and involved through the making,” he says. “My biggest fear is that if I am not excited about what I am doing, I will probably be bad at it. Because I keep being told that whatever I feel shows on my face and in my eyes.”

It’s made for exciting viewing, but it’s also given him a view of the performing life that few actors anywhere in the world have. Here’s a glimpse of what that’s like.

The big Netflix show. The Perfect Couple (2024)

Khatter plays Shooter Dival, a rich family friend at a posh wedding on Nantucket island in the US. The murder mystery series also stars Nicole Kidman and Dakota Fanning. He’s Brown, but hardly the token desi – no Indian accent, no digs about curry, IT or arranged marriages. “This was the first time I’d seen a role for an Indian character devoid of the stereotype,” he says. “That’s the part you want if you’re looking to do work that is independent of your culture.”

Scooter was to have a British accent. Khatter asked for it to be changed to a standard American one. It just made sense, the actor says; his character was friends with Manhattan’s elite. The showrunners obliged. But Khatter says he stood out more because he was a newcomer than because he was Indian. “Hollywood is extremely professional and systematic and that trickles into the way people work on set,” he says. At lunch, the unit eats together – there’s no hierarchy like there is on Indian sets.

One bonus of being Brown? The show threw in the group dance sequence after they cast Khatter. It shows up during the opening credits. Of course, Khatter has the smoothest moves.

That unusual debut. Majid Majidi’s Beyond the Clouds (2017).

“It was a one-of-a-kind project,” Khatter recalls of the romance set in the slums of Mumbai. Majidi is a celebrated filmmaker. Audiences worldwide have wept over his stories about young kids enrolling in a race to win a pair of shoes, or a distraught father trying to abandon his blind son. “Young actors don’t get offered roles that are as complex and demand that much from actors. It felt like an ordained opportunity. I couldn’t pass it up,” says Khatter.

It’s not the kind of debut Indian actors are used to. Majidi didn’t shower praises on his performers. Khatter had a tough monologue in the film, which he thought he aced on his second try. “When I asked him about the shot, he said, ‘Very bad’,” he recalls. But Khatter sneakily watched him view the playback, kiss his own hand and place it on the monitor in appreciation. “It was the biggest reward for me because it’s a director who has made films I will watch for the rest of my life.”

Khatter says that Majidi also taught him how to give his best with every shot. On days when they had 14-hour-long shoots, Majidi would go to Khatter right before they started rolling and whisper in his ear, “I know you’re tired, but the audience won’t know that. And this is the only time you can do this. Once it’s done, it’s going to be out there for posterity. And roll and sound...”

“It set the tone for me as an actor.”

The mainstream blockbuster. Khaali Peeli (2020).

Childhood sweethearts get separated, only to cross paths, years later – he drives a taxi, she’s planning to flee the brothel. There’s crime, a bag of cash and a taxi strike.

Khatter loved Khaali Peeli’s dedication to its own ridiculousness. He even had a filmy moment on set when he drove the classic Premier Padmini taxi at 50 kmph in reverse for a chase scene. It was co-star Ananya Panday’s first day on set and she was in the back seat. “When she realised I was driving, she broke character and started screaming. But we got the shot and I even did a flamboyant 360-degree stop.” Everyone on set applauded.

The tales of forbidden love. Dhadak (2018), A Suitable Boy (2020)

Khatter played the lead in the Hindi adaptation of the Marathi hit Sairat, as well as in the miniseries adaptation of Vikram Seth’s novel. Dhadak has lovers pulled apart by social class. A Suitable Boy is set in a newly independent India. Khatter plays Maan Kapoor, a politician’s son who falls for a much older woman Saeeda Bai (Tabu). The relationship is taboo to begin with, but involves murder, tragedy and insecurity too.

“It’s a progressive look at love despite the fact that it was set in the 1950s,” Khatter says. “The role is layered and has some amount of conflict, an interesting take on the romantic hero.”

Was it awkward to romance Tabu, 53, whose work he grew up watching? Khatter says that reading through the intimate scenes with director Mira Nair and her helped break the ice. “Tabu has no airs. But she has a naughty sense of humour. So, we goofed around and got along. There was no over-intellectualising the scenes. It was about being in the moment.” Nair tended to keep filming after a scene was done. “Much of it made it to the final cut. Of course. I was nervous. But I was just doing my job.”

Reality check: Would Ishaan Khatter sign up for a reality show?

Yes to:

Hot Ones. Interviews conducted over hot-sauce chicken wings? Sign him on. “I’m down for any travel and food show,” he says. “I can also be a master taster on MasterChef.”

Indian Matchmaking. Having Sima Aunty set him up with a woman? “I’d go on as a guest just to see what’s up.”

Fabulous lives of Bollywood Heroes. “That’s a mouthful. But, why not?” he asks. The show follows celebrities and details their extravagant, dramatic lives. “My life may look fabulous on the outside but when you’re a silly old oak like me, who is passionate about work, it’s pretty non-glamorous. You do 14-15 hour shifts, sweat and bleed every day, work in stinky locations. Let’s have people see that. The only glamour is that I love what I’m doing. Maybe that’s what viewers get to see.”

Shark Tank. He’d want to go up against start-ups, inventions and entrepreneurs too. “I wouldn’t win but there’ll be some interesting ideas and failed experiments.”

Squid Game. The fictional elimination game that everyone was obsessed with in 2021? “Yes, for the craziness of it.”

A singing reality show. “Yikes! But yes. It’ll be an excuse to learn singing. It’s something that’s been on the agenda for me for a while. I’ve been told I am sureela. I enjoy singing. But I have zero training. It would be an excuse to have a crack at it. I’ll probably make a fool of myself on TV, which is even more fun.”

No to:

Keeping up with the Khatters. No exaggerated family dramas, please. “Listen, I have no delusions of grandeur or airs about my family. Not my zone.”

Love is Blind. Singles trying to find a match without meeting face-to-face? “No. I’m not putting that aspect of my life out there.”

The Circle. “It’s a contest about building a social-media persona and presence. I can’t participate because I’m trying to cut down on my time online.”

Bigg Boss. Competition, misdirection, eviction. “I am claustrophobic. I won’t last more than a day. I can’t do small talk. It’s just a recipe for disaster.”

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