Patralekha Paul prefers working in alternative cinema, says Kritika Dua
For Patralekha Paul, acting can be equated with meditation, her take on things and clarity in her headspace. The two-film-old actress holds her own and is not image-conscious. She likes to portray the characters as real as possible without deviating from the script and tries to experiment in that zone.
The spontaneous actor, who will be seen in Nanu Ki Jaanu, opposite Abhay Deol exclaimed, “Working with these crazy people was sheer joy, I had a lot of fun during the shoot. I haven’t done a comedy before. So when this script came to me, I jumped at the idea of playing an amicable soul in a horror comedy. So, I liked the whole package. I have seen Faraz Haider’s War Chhod Na Yaar too. I was quite hungry to flesh out the character.” The major portion of the shoot took place in Delhi and Noida. Calling her character a “sweet ghost,” she said, “I didn’t have to portray a scary character, I found the ghost very real and human-like. I want to bring a smile on people’s faces every time I come on screen and hope they like me.”
Patralekha debuted in the critically-acclaimed City lights and followed it up two years later with Vikram Bhatt’s forgettable erotic-thriller love Games which she regrets doing. For her, alternative cinema trumps commercial projects. Said she, “I get offers from a lot of alternative cinema and I choose from what I get. I think the producers and directors see me more in the alternative space though I would like to dabble in commercial cinema. Thankfully the lines are blurring and there is more work for people like me.” The 28-year-old actress believes acting is a very fluid skill and she likes to work in a stress-free zone.
And though people usually ask if it is a good time for actresses to be in the industry, she said there were always meatier roles in the industry. “How well women do in the industry depends on them, their perseverance, patience and love for work.”
Does she feel she is getting a limited number of scriptsIJ Patralekha promptly replied, “I don’t know the reason behind this. When I started out, people were confused if I was young or old. The more I work, the more people I get to know and they are also warming up to me.” She is unfazed by the clash with Beyond the Clouds and informed us that they’ve got the maximum number of screens among these films. “At the end of the day, the audience decides the fate of the film — whether they understand it and if it resonates with them or not.”
On objectification of women in Bollywood, she said, “I don’t think it happens only in the film industry. look at what is happening in our country, it can’t get lower and more horrific than that what it is today. I feel objectified every single day. If I walk out of my building, men are ogling at me, if I am walking on the road they will touch me or pinch me. This is not how it used to be and it is getting worse by the day.”
Patralekha was last seen in a web series Bose: Dead/Alive where she played the character of Nandini. On the trajectory of her career going forward, she said, “I want to work harder to be the best in the country. It’s a long way and I want to keep working every day so that at some point I achieve what I dream of. I have worked with some of the best directors in the country and I want to work with them again. I also want to work with Anurag Kashyap and Vishal Bhardwaj as they bring out the best from actors.” And no she will neither talk about her boyfriend Rajkummar Rao or use his popularity to curry favours.