Few Indians Aware Of Surrogacy, But No Taboos: Tusshar Kapoor

Atanu Roy Kolkata, Feb 9: Bollywood actor-producer Tusshar Kapoor, who opted for surrogacy to have his son Laksshya, feels few people in India are aware of the practice, but there are no taboos regarding it in the country. “I don’t think there have been taboos regarding surrogacy. I just think that not many people in India have been aware of it.

“…There’s no harm in it if it’s within the framework of law and is opted for responsibly. I don’t think it is fair to be viewed as a taboo,” Kapoor, a single parent, told UNI in an e-mail interview. Kapoor’s son Laksshya was born via surrogacy on June 1, 2016. Asked to spell out the best and the worst comment he heard after choosing to be a single parent, Kapoor said the remarks were positive and progressive.

“There were only good comments when I chose to be a single parent and when I announced the birth of my son. So they were all really positive, progressive and very encouraging and they made me feel like I did the best thing on Earth”.

However, there were one or two odd comments too. But Kapoor chose to ignore them, “Probably, (they) are very old school and felt like it’s not doing justice to the child without even knowing how I’m going to be, as a father. So that’s a bit presumptuous and that is not really being fair. “And I ignored them as there were thousands of very encouraging ones,” said the 45-year-old actor. Kapoor, who has now turned author with the book “Bachelor Dad” – which hit the stands on Feb 7 – recently participated online in the Apeejay Kolkata Literary Festival 2022.

In the festival session headlined “Celebrity Dads, Bollywood and more” Kapoor narrated his “amazing” journey as a celebrity dad. “I’ve managed to work and look after my son and do a lot of other things, which I’ve highlighted in this book. However, I don’t like to look at myself as a celebrity dad. I look at myself as a father. “I happen to be a celebrity, which is great but I don’t view myself as a celebrity dad. I don’t feel like I need to be treated differently. “I want my son to grow normally, and I want him to be confident and a man of the world,” said Kapoor, whose successful films include Mujhe Kucch Kehna Hai (2001), Khakee (2004), Kyaa Kool Hai Hum (2005), Dhol (2007) and Shootout at Wadala (2013). His portrayal of “Lucky” in the Golmaal film series also received critical acclaim. Talking about the lean period after his blockbuster debut in ‘Mujhe Kucch Kehna Hai’, Kapoortold UNI it was a learning curve. “There was a lean phase of a couple of years until ‘Khakee’ happened. I don’t think things went wrong. I think it was just like a learning curve that all actors, no matter how big or small they are, have to go through. It’s a learning curve of a few wrong decisions and then we all bounce back if we have it in us”. After the Rajkumar Santoshi film ‘Khakee’ turned things around for Kapoor, he has seen a string of successes. Kapoor said he doesn’t accept every film that comes his way because he is very passionate about work. “I have had many critically acclaimed performances… Being selective just goes to show that I take my work very seriously. I don’t work for money. I just work for my satisfaction. I work to entertain the masses and I like to do films that will work with the masses, work with the audiences”. However, Kapoor would love to work more regularly, provided he was provided with good scripts. The actor, who has dabbled in almost all genres, including sex comedy, said thrillers appeal to him the most. “My favourite genre is a thriller. But I haven’t even done too many thrillers”, added the actor who recently has done a murder mystery ‘Marich’. He also remembered the time he had done ‘Khakee’ which was also a thriller. Kapoor has also produced and featured in adult comedies. Queried about the receptivity of the Indian audience as far as adult comedies are concerned, the ‘Mastizaade’ actor said, the country’s film-going public is mature enough to enjoy such movies. “But we have to be responsible as producers. We have to be mindful and draw the line so that it is more on the naughty side and doesn’t go overboard into that zone of being vulgar”. he said. Quizzed on the issue of nepotism in Bollywood, which has emerged as an oft-used word in the media after the death of actor Sushant Singh Rajput in mid-2020, Kapoor said the malady “probably does exist”. Tusshar Kapoor, son of yesteryear’s popular Hindi film hero Jeetendra and younger brother of producer-director Ektaa Kapoor, however, gave a balanced reply. “I don’t discuss too much about nepotism because I believe that the industry is equally unfair and equally fair to everybody. “We all have our ups and downs, our challenges and sorrows and our sleepless nights. So nepotism probably does exist because we all see groups and we all see favouritism. But no one is going to have it easier than anybody else,” he said. The actor, who has also produced film like ‘Laxmii’, also said the industry throws a tough challenge to youngsters. “If you have one good year because of certain contacts or good PR or being in a certain group, the next year it may not be so and you have to work doubly hard to catch up on the lost time. No one’s having it easier than anyone else”, he concluded.