Sonakshi Sinha opens up about the winds of change in the film industry and how she deals with trolls. By Unnati Joshi
She’s got the spark, the charm and million other things working in her favour. Sonakshi Sinha has been successfully shining among bigger stars, making a mark and walking away with tons of fans with each film. After playing the protagonist in the powerful Akira, she is back helming another women-oriented project, Noor.
The film is an adaptation of the popular novel Karachi, You’re Killing Me!, written by Pakistani journalist Saba Imtiaz. It follows a Pakistani journalist Noor’s misadventures and love life as she navigates her way through Mumbai. “Noor is the journey of a girl who is like every modern day girl, 20 something, working, trying to achieve something. She is somebody who wants everything in life. She wants the perfect career, relationship, figure. She wants it all while trying to make a name for herself. All of these are the hopes and dreams that every girl will be able to connect with and I did too. It’s about the journey of this girl, Noor Roy Chaudhary, who at first is not that serious but then something happens in her life. She makes a mistake and the film is about how she embarks on a self-discovery while rectifying it.”
While you may think that Sonakshi took up this project as a followup to her successful outing in Akira, she insists the choice was rather spontaneous. “When the script came to me, I just connected with it immediately because it was such a real role. There were many parts when I thought, ‘Oh my God, I react in the exact way’. The director narrated the film to me for about half-an-hour. We were on the ninth floor by the time he reached the ground floor; I called him and told him that I will be doing this film. That’s how Noor happened,” she told us.
Quizzed about the preparations, the actress quickly said, “I didn’t have to prepare much. I am somebody who doesn’t have to prepare much for any character. Unless it’s a film like Akira where I have to physically train myself. I am director’s actor. I like to speak to my director and understand from them how they have picturised the character. My job as an actor is to potray the visualisation that the director has. Because I feel they are the ones who are the closest to the script. Also, I am spontaneous in front of the camera.”
Sonakshi’s love for singing is known to all, be it performing live at IIFA, mentoring singing reality show Indian Idol or playback for her own films. The actress has also sung a song titled Move Your lakk with Diljit Dosanjh and rapper Badshah for Noor. “I really like singing and that’s why I have started humming a little. I released my first single before I sang for Akira. Here, there’s a really cool track that Badshah has composed and Diljit has sung. They wanted a female vocalist and Badshah asked me to do it. So the collaboration happened very randomly but I am really glad the song has become such a big hit. Singing is a hobby that I want to develop but it also depends on how much time I get from acting. Right now, I am working on another single. I will be very happy if it receives the same response.”
Since she plays the role of an entertainment journalist in her forthcoming flick, what if she was a journalistIJ How would she change the coverage of the film industryIJ “I think the one thing that bothers everyone is how things are irresponsibly printed without any verification. Because it affects a lot of us. It may seem like entertainment to the readers or the people who write it. But I strongly want to pinpoint that our personal lives are not meant to entertain you. It is our professional life, what we do onscreen which is supposed to be of entertainment value. When people write about things that are not concerned about our work, then it’s a bit uncomfortable,” she shared.
Sonakshi is secure about her space. “I think the film industry has already started changing in the direction I have wanted to see it in terms of great roles that are being written for women characters. Women are now protagonists and I am happy to be one of them.”
As an actor, how is she dealing with the radar of scrutinyIJ Said she, “I think when you become an actor, you kind of understand what you signed up for. It is a visual medium at the end of the day. And you are in the spotlight literally. I don’t give it that much of attention and I don’t succumb to any kind of pressure. I focus on my work and I go ahead with that.”
Sonakshi, who is selecting strong women-oriented roles has been roped in for a remake of the 1969 suspense thrillerIttefaq. “My role in Ittefaq is not very negative per say, it’s a very interesting role because I get to play it from two different perspectives. So as an actor it’s quite challenging. It was lot of fun to be able to do that. It was like playing two roles within one film,” she said.
Future plansIJ “Right now I am jam-packed with Noor. Then of course there will be Ittefaq and then a single and then I am on the verge of signing something that really challenges me as an actor. I am excited about it but it isn’t done yet, so I don’t want to make any claims,” she summarised.
Photo: Pankaj Kumar