“I do not compromise, that’s why people love me!”, says Mohit Sinha, the voice behind Kakashi in Hindi

• At Anime India Delhi, Anime Society India had the opportunity to speak with Mohit Sinha, the voice behind Kakashi in Hindi.
• Mohit Sinha talks about transcreation, range and the future of Hindi-dubbed Anime shows in India.

With Naruto dominating the screens in Indian households, a new generation of fans are being born within the country witnessing the story of an ordinary boy from the Leaf Village who simply refuses to give up. Guiding the boy, is the legendary Jonin from the same village, Hatake Kakashi, another legendary character known by every anime fan across the country because of his depth as a character and being a father figure to the main character of the series, Uzumaki Naruto.

At Anime India Delhi held at Yashobhoomi Convention Center, Anime Society India had the chance to sit down and have a conversation with the legend who is voicing Kakashi in Hindi, Mohit Sinha, who is also known for his extensive roles in various other roles like Asta from Black Clover, Takemitchy from Tokyo Revengers, Jiren from Dragon Ball Super, etc.

We asked Mohit Sinha about his current roles , dubbing techniques and the future of Hindi-dubbed anime shows in India.

Anime Society: Mr. Sinha, you have been voicing Kakashi for Naruto, which is being broadcast on Sony Yay!, and now it has entered the Shippuden Arc. We are getting to see your performance and we are enjoying it very much. However, dubbing in Hindi from another Asian language has its challenges. Somewhere, do you feel that you are able to replicate the original feelings from Japanese to Hindi better than any other language you have dubbed from?

Mohit Sinha: Exactly, I would say the main purpose of translating is not important, the main purpose is transcreating. Transcreation is like doing that character in my own way. Like, Kakashi is already being done by the great artists in English and Japanese. But when I got Kakashi, my approach was quite different. I felt like have to give it a slight more edge. Because we Indians need more of swaggy things. So, that’s why most of the dialogues which are popular and which are being circulated everywhere, are being made up by me while recording Kakashi. I feel that people are connecting to Kakashi at a different level. They see a mentor in him. Like, he will protect us.

I took the position of a student in my mind and approached Kakashi. And I think, I enjoy doing it in Japanese. It is interesting.

Anime Society: So you are saying that when you are voicing Kakashi, you are giving a Bollywood style or a filmy twist?

Mohit Sinha: No filmy, no Bollywood. But a style which carries a bit more swag. Doing Bollywood makes it a bit more cliche. Then it doesn’t remain authentic to the anime style. I interact with the fans through Instagram and YouTube, so, I know what exactly they want. They want that the expression, the feelings in Japanese or in any other language which we are doing in Hindi, should be replicated properly. You can go above it, but not below it. So, while doing Kakashi, I felt that I have to feel that.

Some characters are very gifted for you. When I got the role of Kakashi, I felt that something was missing in my life, which Kakashi filled up.

Anime Society: You have voiced a wide range of characters. For example, you have voiced Jack Dawson, Natsuki Subaru, Asta and even notorious villain like Mahito. All these characters have distinct personalities. How do you prepare yourself to get into them and understand before you finally voice them?

Mohit Sinha: So, whenever I start voicing for any character, I watch two to three scenes or at least a whole chunk of scenes to get an exact idea of how that character performs. I have also dubbed Jiren from Dragon Ball Super. He is also a villain just like Mahito, but they have two different personalities. One is very much powerful and aggressively destructive, whereas Mahito is someone who will try cunningly catch someone and beat them up. So, the body language is the key to success, I feel, particularly. Even more the voice impression, the body language that the actor has carrying in Japanese, the way he is trying to portray that character, that is important for me. So, I focus on the body language and voice tonality, then I switch my tone accordingly. Because when I do for Asta, I will not sound like Kakashi. (To explain his point, Mohit Sinha demonstrates by performing a line for Asta and Kakashi each, highlighting the difference in the personalities of the respective characters) So, they are two different. And same goes with, when Jiren will go, the voice will become heavier.So, the kind of personality I am seeing in front of me, I change my voice accordingly. I am also the voice for Daffy Duck by the way. (In Daffy’s voice) So, I have to change my tone like this because that is a very funny character.

Because being a voice actor and an actor, it’s a wide range of characters. So, I feel that if I am able to pull it off, it is a big deal. If I am playing Kakashi and Daffy Duck together, people are not able to recognize me as for one, I am twisting my tongue and the other, I am giving a lot of swag.

Anime Society: For a moment, I could really see Asta in front of my eyes.

Mohit Sinha: Asta is one of my toughest roles. During the dubbing of Black Clover, when I did those 52 episodes of the first season, I had to take half an hour break after each and every episode because he used to shout a lot and I cannot compromise while performing. Because that’s not my kind of performance. I don’t compromise. Sometimes, I feel that even blood might come out of my throat when I shout because the role requires a lot of shouting. So, I go through the techniques and I have to push myself. That’s why people love me.

Anime Society: Definitely. When you say that blood is going to come out of your throat, that means you are pushing yourself to extremes.

Mohit Sinha: If you have seen Tokyo Revengers, there is a particular scene in which his [Takemitchy] girlfriend dies in an accident and he is screaming from the bottom of his heart somewhere on the top of the roof. And it was a long shout, scream. So, I told the recordist that don’t cut it in between, let me see the scene twice, thrice and then I will do it in one take because I cannot give it again. So, even if the mic or the studio breaks, I have to give my all for it. And if you see that scene, I can guarantee you will get goosebumps, because I literally cried in the studio while doing that scene.

If the Japanese or the Hindi version is being played simultaneously, then it shouldn’t feel like we are compromising anything in the Hindi version.

Anime Society: What do you think about the future prospects of Hindi dubbed anime titles? Do you think that the current trend of Hindi dubs has the potential for anime, as a medium, to reach a wider set of audience nationally like how Jungle Book Shonen Mowgli and Dragon Ball Z did in the 90s and early 2000s?

Mohit Sinha: I think it can. I think because now not only me, there is a group of voice actors who are doing anime every now and then, and they are giving their 100-200%. Like, it is so good when you feel that the competition is getting so healthy. Because of the healthy competition, the industry always grows. So, when others are doing great in front of you and I am doing great, it will reach wider audience. They will see it in Japanese, now they will see it in Hindi. So, they will feel that we are doing good. Like this event where we are meeting [Anime India Delhi] is a fine example of such thing. I have been invited with the Japanese Kakashi [Inoue Kazuhiko, Voice Actor of Kakashi in Japanese], the OG voice! And we are sharing the same stage. We are talking to the same audience. We are clicking pictures with the same kind of people. It is like a dream come true for any voice actor. So, I feel that in coming years, I think 4-5 years from now, Hindi anime will go worldwide.

Anime Society: So, you think that Hindi anime is going to go worldwide?

Mohit Sinha: Definitely, people will definitely see it. Because now we are doing great work. And it will be recognized, I am sure. I have even started a YouTube channel called, “Mic Check with Mohit Sir“. So, in the inital episode, which I will eventually do it again, I was interviewing my own character. I am Mohit Sinha on this side and on the side, I am Daffy Duck, I am Asta, I am Kakashi. So, I am doing both the things.

So, this kind of podcast, this kind of, you know, have never been done anywhere in the world. The artist is taking interviews of the same characters which we have dubbed, which I feel is a whistleblower to the anime industry. Because you will see how much a person can modulate his voice. And now I have started calling other voice actors as well. So, if you would like, do check it out!

Anime Society: Without revealing anything confidential, is there anything you can share about your upcoming projects? Or the kind of roles that fans can look forward to hearing you next?

Mohit Sinha: There a lot of shows coming up. For Muse India as well, I have done a lot of roles. So, Re: Zero Season 4 is coming up and I am the voice for Natsuki Subaru as well. It is a very exciting season and people are gonna love it. I have also done a recent anime which is Skeleton Knight in Another World. So, it was premiered at Anime India Delhi in Hindi for the first time. So, it is coming on Muse India YouTube Channel and various other OTT Platforms. And there are few more shows which I am not allowed to say as of now, because of the contracts. But you are gonna love it in July. It is an amazing anime which is going to come on Netflix as well.

Anime Society: Looking forward to it very much. We all have no doubts on the quality of dubs by Netflix, Muse India, and hearing that you are a part of that team is really great! We are gonna love it for sure.

Mohit Sinha: I am quite sure that that anime will create a havoc in the anime industry. Because it is such a good anime. I have never seen such good visuals ever before!

The session ended with a light laughter as we extend our thanks to Mohit Sinha for his precious time to sit down and talk to Anime Society India.

Naruto, originally broadcast on TV Tokyo, based on the manga “Naruto” by Kishimoto Masashi which was serialized in “Weekly Shonen Jump” Magazine by Shueisha, is currently on air in Hindi and other Indian language dubs on Sony YAY! The show can be currently streamed on Anime Times on Prime Video, SonyLIV, Crunchyroll and Netflix in both subtitled and dubbed versions respectively.