EXCLUSIVE! 83 Actor Sahil Khattar On Taking The Big Leap With Films: I Am Here To Play The Long Game

Sahil Khattar who garners fame as a host, YouTuber and social media influencer can't wait to take on the fictional world. In a candid interview with Filmibeat, Sahil opened up about his recent projects 200 Halla Ho! in which he is playing a psycho killer, and Kabir Khan 83' in which he will be seen playing the Indian cricket team's wicket-keeper Syed Kirmani.

Talking about 83's release Sahil told us at Filmibeat, he was initially disappointed but "realised that there is no need to be disappointed because there are so many people who are risking their lives. I hope the film does release soon, a lot of hard work has gone into it during the peak years of my career."

Take a look at the excerpts from the interview,

Your character is 200 Halla Ho! is of a psycho killer, how did you prep for the role and get into your character's mindset?
It was very difficult in the start. I had to do a lot of research, so much so that now I understand what leads to such thoughts or where the toxic behaviour could stem from in a person. I ended up watching a lot of content on serial killers from Dushman, Sangharsh, to Raman Raghav old and new. While going through the script I continued to look for inspiration. It's like you have to watch good content to make good content. I had to read a lot, to understand and internalise the character. Apart from mental preparation, there was also physical preparation. The character has a very worker's body, and after lockdown to get into shape it was a long process. I had to follow a strict diet and work out a lot but it all added to the character. Since the character is Maharashtrian I also had to work on that accent. I can't believe I did all of it in 30 days.

Do you have any scenes with Amol Palekar, did you get a chance to interact with him on set?
I did not talk to anyone on set. Once they saw that I was in the zone no one even tried talking to me, because I was in a very dark space. My team also could not talk to me much, and I could not communicate well with them because mentally I was somewhere else and I wasn't eating many carbs so had a lot of mood swings.

Everyone was quite scared around me, nobody knew what was the right time to talk to me. But it actually helped me with playing the character. It made the character very unpredictable and shocking. One thing that surprised me was I didn't know I would be able to compartmentalize between Sahil the actor who worked hard and did all the research and the Sahil, who was executing it during shoots. But it all worked out beautifully.

How did you get out of the dark space after the filming was over?
I took a vacation in Goa (laughs). The lockdown was going on at the time, so I just took my PlayStation would play FIFA for hours. I am a FIFA addict, I can play for 12 hours straight. So I took my time over there to relax, spent some time in the pool, at home and just reset my mind.

From writing for others to hosting, then YouTube now you have come to the big screen, was feature films always the end game for you? Or is it something that just happened to come your way?
You have watched Endgame right, it seems like it is the end but it isn't. So, it's exactly like that. The future of content is fiction and films. Non-fiction is snackable in only a certain way. Fiction is the long game and I am here to play the long game. You must have noticed, I am not doing much content creation now. It's because not doing it is giving me time to focus on acting and creation. There is a lot of writing that goes in, I have created Being Indian on my own with hard work. Social media as a long game will not suit anyone. If someone is the number one Youtuber today, there will be someone else to challenge it. Even PewDiePie got T-Series.

As for fiction writing, I am already writing projects and they are being vetted by platforms and production houses. Soon there will be announcements as well.

One of your other films projects is Kabir Khan's 83, fans are waiting for the theatres to open and the film to release. How are you holding up with the extended delay in release?
I was sure that the film will realise but then lockdown happened, and I felt a bit bad. But then I realised that there is no need to be disappointed because there are so many people who are risking their lives. My family has always thought me that while you do aim for the skies, you shouldn't forget to look around and behind. A lot of money and hard work has been put into this and if producers are understanding of the crisis, we are just small fishes in a pond. We will follow the big ones and resurface. I hope the film does release soon, a lot of hard work has gone into it during the peak years of my career.

Playing a character based on a real person is not easy, it requires a physical and mental transformation. You look very much like Syed Kirmani, the witch-keeper of the Indian cricket team in 1983, did that make it easier for you to become his character?
It helped me not in prep but while bagging the role. I was one of the few ones who didn't audition. My cricket was stellar, I have had a very athletic childhood. I have also represented India in a sport called Roller Hockey and won a bronze medal for the team. I am also a sports anchor so playing cricket and talking about it comes naturally to me.

I think I emulated Mr Syed Kirmani in one of the meetings and I was finalised. That was what really helped me get the role, but the fact that I and Syed Kirmani look very similar adds to the film also. When Kiri-Bhai first saw me he also said, 'Oh Kiri-Bhai' and I was shocked. So when the guy himself says that I look like him, there's nothing more. Also when it was announced, there were so many memes about how similar we looked. I loved them.

After playing a real-life character and a psycho killer, what's next for you?
What I am really looking forward to is great work and not any-one kind of project. I want to go ahead and be a part of great films. Thankfully now work has started to pour in, in terms of fiction also. I am going to pick and chose my battles. I can't take any names right now but there are projects in the pipeline and everyone will soon find out.