I have a point to prove!: Prateek Chakravorty

Several star kids — right from Hrithik Roshan, Jackky Bhagnani and Arjun Kapoor to Sonam Kapoor and Sonakshi Sinha — are all known to have shed their extra weight to make their Bollywood debut as actors. However, newbie Prateek Chakravorty, who’s made his big screen debut with From Sydney With Love, is seen flaunting not a six or eight pack but in his own words, ‘a family pack!’ “I did think about losing weight initially, but then I chose not to as I wanted to look the part,” says Prateek, talking about his debut that sees him in the weighty role of an underdog.
The film not only marks his debut as an actor, but also as a writer, producer and director, but Prateek reveals that acting was actually never on his agenda. “I had always wanted to be a part of Bollywood, but I had never considered acting. It was only after several auditions that I realised that  I could probably capture the nuances of the character better myself, as Raj Bakshi is 85 per cent of the real me. So I  have become an I-PAWD man (producer, actor writer, director),” laughs Prateek. The intention, he says, was to revive the family banner.

Interestingly however, despite belonging to a film family (he is the grandson of late filmmaker Pramod Chakravorty), Prateek insists that he did not feel like a star-kid. “Well my grandfather was a  great filmmaker, but it was a long time ago. My dad stayed away from Bollywood and our production house hasn’t made a film in 14 years, so for me, it was like starting from scratch. I would not call myself a star kid at all. There are zero expectations, but I have to prove a point with this. It is my tribute to my grandfather, whose legacy I want to revive,” adds Prateek, who has earlier assisted Vipul Shah on several of his films.

Acting, producing, writing and directing, ask the newcomer how tough it was juggling the four and Prateek admits that production was the hardest. “Directing and acting was a dream,” he lets on. Point out that it’s not just him but also the rest of the star cast who are all debutantes on the big screen, and Prateek says that it made working together all the more fun. “The film was important for all of us,” he says.

But his banner apart, is he willing to work for other production houses? “Yes, of course. I have plans for my banner, but I would love to write, direct, act for others and produce films with others too,” he says. And what about shedding the extra pounds? “Well, if a role demands it, I will lose it,” smiles Prateek.