“When I first saw Kalim, my reaction was, ‘Cool!’―I liked his combination of ‘cool’ and ‘cute.’ But as I read the script, I learned more about his position in life and his backbone, and my image of him had to be redefined: there is more to him than being cheerful and looking cool.
Having been born into a wealthy family and carefully protected his whole life by Jamil and other attendants, he is generous, has no concept of inconvenience and suspects no one of ill-intentions. He welcomes every person he meets with open arms, with no concern for the ‘wealth’ of others―he is always happy to give gifts.
In reality, though, he is in constant danger and has been since he was a small child. He has a poison tester present at his every meal, is well-guarded and actually―I think―lonely. Maybe that is why he is so quick to throw banquets, and always encouraging people to enjoy themselves?
I get the feeling that he always wants to enjoy himself in the moment, because there is always the chance that he might die the next day.
The instructions I received were to ‘portray someone who is a good person’ while also including the dark shadow that exists behind his smile. I tried to capture the ‘shadowy’ part of his character without putting that darkness in the forefront.
I always had to build up Kalim up in my mind before going in for recording. Kalim is always excited and is constantly releasing energy, so portraying the character burns a lot of calories. I was always eating rice balls and snacks during recordings to keep my energy up.
The most difficult part was the fourth book of the main story, ‘Schemer of the Scalding Sands.’ There were parts where I put so much into a scene that it felt like my throat would bleed!
It was hard to say lines like, ‘We only have about a hundred servants,’ without sounding sarcastic. That was also part of the basis of my portrayal of Karim. For example, that dormitory uniform. It’s so cool! It’s my favorite outfit in the game.
This is just my personal interpretation, but I like to imagine that that outfit was inspired by high-brand, European fashion, and Kalim wearing such expensive clothes as if they were street fashion, not thinking twice about it―that’s my image of him. He is in such a high position in society, and here I am, an ordinary person (laughs) imagining these things and doing his dialogue. It’s so difficult!”
-Twisted Wonderland Fanbook vol.1 (2020)
Twisted Wonderland Reference Note 