Films and acting have empowered me: Actor Manhar Kumar

From playing the stage in Chandigarh to winning three Student Emmys, Manhar Kumar has come a long way. The young actor-director’s filmography touches on complex and sensitive subjects, which have won him several international awards. In 2018, his first short film as a director, a documentary titled What is watching? who follow the lives of children who sell bottles of wine for life, won him his first student Emmy. His thesis film for his college, Savannah College of Art and Design, stardust He received the Audience Award at the Georgia Film Festival, and most recently, he won another student Emmy (Talent Performance Category) for his role in the film. Distant.

What inspired you to enter this field?

As far as I can remember, movies have always been my first best friend; Make me laugh and make me aspire to dream. Acting became my elixir in high school, balancing math and science. In college, in street plays, on stage and in shorts, I devoted many hours to the craft. While in America, I spent time observing, reading and writing, creating scripts and acting in films.

You have successfully walked the path of being an actor as well as a director; What challenges have you faced in both these formats?

I believe that challenges are just hidden opportunities to grow. In the case of an actor, it is polite to audition regularly. Pleasure is not in the result; It is in the process of creating characters, giving them life. The fun of getting into a character and developing my perspective on the world is a rare profession and I am grateful for every moment.

As a director, every moment, the overheard conversations, the sense of wonder that creates many of the narratives.

How do you prepare for your roles?

For each character, my instinct is to dive first; Then the script breaks down, the joy of creation and the subtle psyche of the character kick in.

For example, in Distant, one of the primary scenes in the kitchen, came at the end of a hard day of shooting in the rain. Shekeb (my co-actor) and I had rehearsed the scene a couple of times, but when the camera rolled, a different kind of intensity came. The suppressed desperation, the defeat, the latent defeat, all came across as Richie.

You won Best Actor (Student EMMY®) for his role in DistantHow did you get into the character’s skin?

Trying to Save a Mother’s Life, I Embrace the Pain and Misery of Home Distant, With my director Akhil Deva and producer Natasha Sekera, Richie was eagerly (and silently) drawn into his divine light.

Because of nostalgia, we have memories attached to our childhood, where we are from, therefore, there is a distance between where we are from, where we currently are and where we want to go. I think I’m coming to the fact that where we are at the moment, let’s breathe here, create here… not thinking about finality. That’s what Richie’s creation has gifted me.

As an actor, what kind of roles are you generally inclined to play?

What draws me to acting is the desire to move and entertain the audience; An opportunity to shine the light of awareness, sympathy, compassion and above all justice on the many social evils hidden in the shadow of the public.

As humans, we look for patterns, whether in nature or in habits, yet what’s difficult is fathoming the subtle but daring act of letting go. With childish curiosity, I tend to tread deeply and comfortably with a constant optimism toward each character and story.

What are your plans next?

There are several acting projects both in Cane as well as on the production stage. I have had the opportunity to judge films at the Oregon Short Film Festival, Portland Comedy Film Festival, Oregon Documentary Film Festival and Houston Comedy Film Festival as a jury member.

Films and acting have empowered me. I am conscious of the present and going where the wind is taking me, even though sometimes it is nowhere. There is a beautiful joy in just being.