The Making of “The Vaccine War” • Hollywood Unlocked

The verdict is in for the eagerly anticipated outbreak thriller The Vaccine War and critics are praising actor Mohan Kapur’sincredible performance. The film has garnered immense attention and praise for providing an edge-of-your-seat inside look at a group of bio-scientists’ race against the clock to make India’s indigenous COVID-19 vaccine Covaxin, during the global pandemic. Known for his penchant for making films that address vital issues, director Vivek Agnihotri of The Kashmir Files is behind the lens. 

The Marvel star is at the center of this film as Dr. Raman Gangakhedkar, India’s head of epidemiology and communicable diseases, enlisted in an exclusive COVID vaccine team.  With tentacles reaching much farther than the pandemic itself, The Vaccine War is fast pace thriller reminding us the burden the world put on our scientists to come up with a cure for the COVID outbreak, giving us a unique inside look of how this group of bio-scientists had to fight a war waged not just for India’s people but by vested interests against the country. The anticipation surrounding the movie’s release is due in part to the timely nature of the subject but also because of Agnihotri’s well-known nature to embrace critical issues and extrapolate the truth through intense research. If nothing else, audiences know they can expect a deep look at one of the most impactful subjects the modern world has ever seen.

Kapur was unable to shadow the real-life doctor, so he researched teleconferences, the news, and published essays. “COVID brought the world into a volatile period of suffering, and despite my character being an expert, there was pushback in his theories, and he was second-guessed by non-experts. I can read his frustrations through his essays. So I added elements of physicality to the character, like a pout which the man of his age would have, created a walk and sitting posture given his weight, and let the lower pitch and grain of voice modulation convey his overall frustrations to fill the space physically as I delivered my lines.” While the actor faced tremendous pressure to accurately portray a living legend, he found great reward in the affirmation of his depiction of the doctorfrom the team of scientists on whom the film is based and the audiences at large.

Kapur, who has an extensive body of work in Indian films and television, found global success as Yusuf Khan in the Disney+ Limited Series: Ms. Marvel and the upcoming The Marvels and will, for the first time, be supported by heavy prosthetics, wigs, and body padding to transform him into a real-life character.   

With a wide range of reasons to be excited about this film and to witness Kapur’s transformation, from prominent names attached to it like New Amsterdam’s Anupam Kher, The Vaccine Warholds incredible significance, reminding us of the unsung heroes during the time the world needed them the most. Because of its global relevance, use of authentic storytelling with a purpose, and the emotional depth of both Agnihotri and Kapur, The Vaccine War can potentially provoke insightful and meaningful conversations and inspire change in the future of public health and safety.