Prashantt Guptha: I’ve crossed 35, I still look young, I’m at ease to take risks

Prashantt Guptha made his Hollywood debut in A New Christmas (2019), playing Kabir, a bereaved Indian-origin man who strikes a bond with a Kenyan student. The film, directed by Daniel Tenenbaum and released on Amazon Prime Video in the US, opened up new doors for Prashantt, who's been shuttling between Mumbai and New York for prospective projects. 

Born in Queens, Prashantt debuted with the multicultural Guyana-set comedy Rainbow Raani (2006). He moved eastwards soon, appearing in Bollywood films like Ek Vivaah…Aisa Bhi, Issaq, Neerja, The Tashkent Files and others. More recently, he appeared in the web shows Special Ops and Aashram 3. 

Back in New York since June this year, Prashantt spoke over e-mail about his career coming full circle and upcoming projects. Edited excerpts...

You’re back in your home city after a while. How is New York treating you at the moment?

Well, it’s been fruitful. I feel like I have made months of progress. I met a lot of people that are involved in Hollywood films. I made 50 new contacts. I’ve been invited to Indian media stations for interviews for Aashram. I was also chosen as a guest of honour for the Independence Day Parade in Long Island.

And on the film front?

A New Christmas is the venture that opened gates for me here in the US. Ever since its release on streaming platforms in the US and selection across film festivals worldwide, I’ve had correspondence from managers and agents in Los Angeles and New York. In 2021, it became popular on Amazon Prime in the US especially during the Christmas season, so I'm foreseeing that it will grow every year. At this point, I'm just meeting lots of people between both cities and will hopefully be getting some great work here. But I haven’t officially signed anything yet.

Is an international series on the cards?

Yes. Yes it is.

How are you dividing time between Mumbai and NY?

This whole phase of dividing time has really just begun for me. I’m enjoying it. Especially because I never expected I’d have the courage or desire to take this plunge. But the voice within said it’s the right time. This just makes more sense for my family and frankly I spent enough years in Mumbai in my 20s and as destiny would have it, I couldn’t become a Ranveer Singh or Siddharth Malhotra. Or for that matter a Rajkummar Rao. And talent has nothing to do with, nor hard work. Some people are destined to make it early in life, and others are late bloomers like Nawazuddin Siddiqui, Pankaj Tripathi ji) and the late great Irrfan Khan. Fortunately, I still look young, but I've crossed 35 and I'm now at ease to take more risks fearlessly. And yes, having a base in the US (and citizenship), does help.

How important is good representation in Hollywood? Is it difficult for ethnic or Asian-origin actors to get the best agents?

Representation is everything in the US. You really can’t bag work in Hollywood or New York without a good manager and/or agent. Fortunately, Indians are becoming a popular and rising community in mainstream American entertainment, and I'm here to cash in on it. In India things are different. I’ve worked for 15 years without representation. India’s top companies still behave too big or busy to represent me. It’s okay. I’ve made it this far representing myself and just watch where I go.

How was it working with Prakash Jha and Bobby Deol in Aashram 3?

I’m so grateful my work has been appreciated, and even more grateful to Shruti Mahajan and Prakash Jha for being the ones who got me into this project. Prakash ji has an unbelievable amount of energy, and it is just awe-inspiring. Beyond that, he knows how to extract a more nuanced performance. What a legend. What a beautiful thing he said to me: ‘When you know the why, the how will come naturally.’ As for Bobby bhai, what a sweetheart human being. He gifted me a fragrance because I was praising it every day. Actually that’s what I do when I want something for free. From him I learned humility and just being a great guy. He was born for this role and I'm so happy he obtained the massive success he deserves.

Tell us about your upcoming Hindi projects.

I've got two commercials, a short film and a feature film releasing back to back in the next three months. Details coming soon.