Ishaan Khatter: Comfortable to try a new genre at this stage

Ishaan Khatter

Among horror comedies, I loved Stree [2018]," says Ishaan Khatter of the film that brought the genre to the forefront in Hindi cinema. Audiences and filmmakers have since taken a shine to horror comedies. Now, it's time for Khatter to try his hand at it with Phone Bhoot, which sees Katrina Kaif, Siddhant Chaturvedi and him as ghostbusters. In his first attempt at comedy, Khatter says he relied on spontaneity.

"Comedy is the concept of reacting [to a scene]. You need to be alive in each moment to be spontaneous," he states. To him, the Gurmmeet Singh-directed venture is an interesting addition to the genre that has immense potential. "Horror comedies are perfect for community viewing. It's fun to experience fear and laughter with a crowd in a theatre. This genre has the potential to reach a lot of people."

Phone Bhoot is helmed by Gurmmeet Singh of Mirzapur fame

Five years and four projects later, the actor's filmography consists of dramas - be it Beyond The Clouds (2017) set in Mumbai's slums, or A Suitable Boy (2020) set in the '50s. Phone Bhoot is his way of striking a balance as a performer. "This film is an experiment because I have mostly done dramas. They come more naturally to me. But I don't want to limit myself to a genre. [Shooting for dramas] was a great experience, and I don't want to [assume] that all experiences will be alike. Making a horror comedy was a different process. I feel comfortable to step into a new genre at this stage because it's still early on in my career."

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For his experiment, he has an ally in Chaturvedi. Was he nervous about fronting a two-hero project? "Siddhant and I have become friends; we realised we could talk about a lot of things. I am open to doing more such projects, but they should have solid scripts."