What is Calendar Girls all aboutIJ
The movie is set in the backdrop of fashion and Bollywood and how destiny plays an important role in each one’s life. In the movie there are five girls who come from different places and deals with the goings on in their life.
You are making your Bollywood debut with Calendar Girls. What is your role all aboutIJ
I’m playing Nazeen who comes from a small town and goes to Mumbai with a dream to become a supermodel. Her fate takes her to become one of the calendar girls and what unfolds later is her journey.
What is your take on models and their struggleIJ
I don’t know much about the fashion world. But when I was approached to play the role of Nazeen, I somehow could relate to the calendar girls and their lifestyle. I have struggled a lot during my initial days too, so it was easy for me to relate to their condition.
What message does your film give out at the endIJ
The main message is that nothing can go beyond destiny. The five protagonists through their stories give out five strong, meaningful messages for the society.
What were the challenges you faced during the shooting of the film and how did you deal with itIJ
There were both mental and physical challenges. I have never portrayed a character like this in my previous regional movies. To do justice to it was my first concern. Moreover, when we were shooting in Mauritius, the weather was unfavorable as it was raining non-stop. We had to sit all day doing nothing.
How was the experience working with Madhur BhandarkarIJ
It was an amazing experience. He is a very jolly kind of a person and extremely down-to-earth. Irrespective of winning many National awards for his previous movies, Madhur sir never had any attitude. He knew how to treat a new comer on the sets. As a director, he is clear and focussed in his work and knows what emotion to bring with the expressions. Though he was the seniormost member in our team, he seldom made us feel awkward about it.
You have worked in regional films as well. How different is that from BollywoodIJ
In the regional industries, 95 per cent of movies are hero oriented. Whereas, in Bollywood though there the films may seem male dominant, but a lot of women are given equal importance. In regional movies, people are very punctual at work which I feel Bollywood should learn. The only drawback is that in regional movies, there isn’t mass reach as compared to the hindi film industry.
Do you think this movie will be a big turning point in your careerIJ
Definitely! In fact my life has already begun to change. My phone has not stopped buzzing since the talk of this film went around. My relatives and friends are very excited. I feel fortunate that Sangeeta Ahir the producer and Madhur Bhandarkar gave me this brilliant opportunity.
You have done rope yoga for a Tamil movie — Strawberry. What it is all about and how did you get the right balance for rope yogaIJ
It was a different experience and extremely challenging. I was given two days to learn rope yoga under a trained professional. I had to be very patient as it used to take us the entire day for a one-minute scene.
Any actor or director you would like to work with in futureIJ
My journey has just started in Bollywood and there is a lot to learn from all the directors and actors. I would like to work with Sanjay leela Bhansali as we belong to the same State and I like his work.