After Sonam, Anil Kapoor’s son is set to make film debut

Harshvardhan will star in Mehra’s forthcoming film Mirza.

Filmdom runs in the family. Following his performances in Mr India, Taal and Tezaab, Anil Kapoor marked his space in the Indian film industry. But that wasn’t all. His quest for something new landed him roles in US TV show 24 and Hollywood production Mission:

Impossible — Ghost Protocol. The next member, who stepped up into the film scene, was his daughter Sonam Kapoor, making a debut with Sawariya in 2007. And now, it’s time for Anil’s son, Harshvardhan, to keep the family tradition alive. He will star in film-maker Rakeysh Omprakash Mehra’s forthcoming film Mirza.

“We needed a fresh face and I liked Harsh. He has the fierce intensity of a lover combined with an innocent softness in his eyes,” says Mehra, according to the Times of India. “Mirza is a subject that is close to my heart. [Poet and screenwriter] Gulzar bhai started writing it three years ago.” He added that the draft was ready before his film Bhaag Milkha Bhaag went on floors. “It’s a unique love tragedy based on folklore which has been given a contemporary touch.” The film’s shooting will begin in 2014.

Mehra prefers to write his own scripts but this time he has given the job to the highly-respected lyricist Gulzar, who he always wanted to work with. “He is actually writing a film for me! It’s a dream come true,” he said, according to the Indian Express.

Although Harshvardhan is more inclined towards cinematography and screenplay — he studied writing and acting in the US and is currently working as an assistant to Anurag Kashyap for his movie Bombay Velvet — he is now ready to try out his acting skills.

Apart from Harshvardhan, Sonam has also bagged a role in the movie Mirza. The brother-sister duo is determined to make it big in the industry on their own and without the help of their father. Let’s wait and see how that works out.

Published in The Express Tribune, August 1^st, 2013.

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