It’s easy to understand the secret of Kapoor’s success when we meet him at his Andheri residence—the celebrated television host, who is back as an anchor after a year with SAB TV’s Acting Ki Funshala—is a spontaneous showman.

“I don’t have a style. It’s the passion that is reflected in my anchoring. I share my knowledge of history, society, politics and music with my audience and participants,” he says, sprawling on his sofa.

Funshala is a humorous show with 10 contestants aspiring to be comedy actors—where the winning pair will bag a chance to act in a movie.

Kapoor worked until late the previous night but is still full of beans as he takes us to his balcony. “Currently, reading and farming are the two things I am most passionate about,” he says, joking, “In the forthcoming weeks, you will see me carrying milk and vegetables from my farm for the contestants on the show.”

While he has been missing from action lately, Kapoor promises to be more visible in films. “My next film, The Fakir of Venice, will come up in May-June. It’s the story of two Indians who land up in Venice in 1999—the last year of the millennium,” he says. This Anand Surapur-directed film will see him in the lead along with Farhan Akhtar. “Another film, Do Dilon Ke Khel Mein, is also expected soon, where I play a Punjabi who is married to a south Indian,” says Kapoor, last seen in Rituparno Ghosh’s Raincoat.

But what has him excited is his plan to return to direction after 13 years. “My film will be based on a classic written by a famous Hindi author. It will be produced by my production company. My dream cast would be Amitabh Bachchan and Shahid Kapur,” he says. “My last film Abhay was produced by Jaya Bachchan, for Children’s Film Society. She was the one who inspired me to make the film.”