Jim Sarbh on his 10-year journey: The Jim back then did the best he could do
After his turn as nuclear physicist Homi Jehangir Bhabha in Rocket Boys (2022-2023), Jim Sarbh is back playing a historical figure in a web series. He delivers a nuanced performance as watch manufacturer Titan’s MD, Xerxes Desai, in Amazon MX Player’s Made In India: A Titan Story. One of the delightful aspects of the series is how Jim Sarbh gets the subtle nuances of his character right. For example, he calls a Tata executive ‘Mr Singh’ during a presentation, only to switch back to ‘Sir’ in the very next moment and then again to the former. When he feels confident about the presentation, ‘Mr Singh’ comes out of him naturally, but any doubt in him regarding its success makes him switch back to the more formal salutation. Agreeing with this assessment, Jim Sarbh shares, “What I like about Xerxes and what I think that we have managed to portray throughout the series is that however familiar he is with anybody, he understands the power dynamics and is very respectful of the hierarchies at Tata.”them the same when they are in front of those people. He only calls him Jeh when they are around Pinks (Rupali Arte) or are having a one-on-one.”
Jim Sarbh opines that this attention to detail makes Made In India: A Titan Story an authentic exploration of corporate culture. He adds that the aforementioned is not too different from the dynamic between an actor and a director on the set. He explains, “If you have a certain kind of a relationship with the director where you can speak very affectionately to them in one regard, you do not want others to think that you are not taking their job seriously though. So there are some times where you adopt a more classic tone, which includes
This hierarchy is most evident in the relationship between Xerxes Desai and his close friend cum Tata Group chairman, JRD, (Naseeruddin Shah). As Jim explains, “Xerxes does not call him ‘Jeh’ in front of the Board or anybody else at Tata. Anyone who might call him Sir, he also addresses them the same when they are similarly here, I think he starts on the familiar and then as soon as he is receiving pushback, he returns to the formal and the polite.”
Speaking of pushback, playing a historical figure may come with a certain amount of baggage, especially if it is one as influential as Titan’s managing director. However, Jim shrugs off the notion and reveals, “More than anything, I feel the pressure that I should represent what my character represents and do the job he should do in the series or the film. I want to do it in such a way that the audience connects with it, finds it exciting, follows its journey or is moved by it. Whatever is required in the overall context of the storyJim is also a big believer in doing extensive preparation before entering the set. He had countless discussions with Made In India: A Titan Story director Robbie Grewal and constant back-and-forth with its writers. “It is always tricky with a director because they have to concentrate on so many things, including production design, story as a whole, costume, framing, and lighting. All these hundreds of things. Whereas me as the actor would come in selfishly looking at my part. ‘What is my part going to be?’”
For Jim, actors add colours to the ingredients in the screenplay and bring the characters to life, but the writers and the director lay the groundwork. Creditingstates, “As Robbie was saying the other day, the film is made before you even get to the set. Once you get there, you are coloring it all in, but essentially you should work out the film beforehand. And I think Robbie and the writers were very generous with me, and we all worked together to create this character. Of course, many scenes were just already fantastic as they were. And it was just about playing them out with suspense and honesty.”