It's a dream, feels surreal: Ishaan Khatter on Martin Scorsese boarding 'Homebound'

Having Martin Scorsese on board as an executive producer for "Homebound" is a dream-come-true moment, says actor Ishaan Khatter, who knew about the master filmmaker involvement with the Neeraj Ghaywan-directed movie for ten months but kept it a secret. Khatter plays the lead role in the movie, which will have its world premiere in the Un Certain Regard category at the Cannes Film Festival, which kicks off from May 13. "When Mr. Scorsese came on board... I don't know whether I'm allowed to say, I've been sitting on this for 10 months. I can keep a secret. It was a lot of conversation and back and forth, etc. I'm just so proud and grateful that it's come to what it is. It's a dream, it's surreal. I'm very excited for Cannes. I always wanted to go with my own film. I'm happy my first time is with a movie," the actor told PTI in an interview. "Homebound" is Ghaywan's second full-length feature film. The director made his debut with "Masaan" in 2015, which also premiered in the same segment at Cannes. Khatter praised filmmaker Payal Kapadia, who won the prestigious Grand Prix award at the festival last year for her movie "All We Imagine As Light", for bringing back the spotlight on Indian stories at Cannes. "The global spotlight, especially in the entertainment and cinematic industry, is on India in a very beautiful way that it hasn't been for many, many years. Kudos to Payal Kapadia and her film for paving the way, competing in the main competition after 30 years. "She even said in her speech, 'Don't let it be another 30 years before this happens again'. I'm very proud, I believe we're the only Indian film in Cannes this year," the actor said. Khatter's enthusiasm for "Homebound" also stems from the collaborative process with Ghaywan, a director he has long admired. "Even without all of these labels attached. I was always very, very proud to be a part of this film... He's a deeply caring, sensitive filmmaker. It's a very special film," he said. "Homebound", backed by Dharma Productions, also features Vishal Jethwa and Janhvi Kapoor. It is produced by Karan Johar, Adar Poonawalla, Apoorva Mehta and Somen Mishra and co-produced by Marijke deSouza and Melita Toscan Du Plantier. Khatter is awaiting the release of his series "The Royals", which will stream on Netflix from May 9.