Rachana Dubey (BOMBAY TIMES; October 16, 2019)
In about four years of making her debut, Bhumi Pednekar has been stereotyped, but not in a way that she minds. The actress has increasingly played roles that belong to small-town-India in Sonchiriya, Toilet — Ek Prem Katha, Shubh Mangal Savadhan and Dum Laga Ke Haisha. And moving forward, her kitty is brimming with films like Bala, Pati Patni Aur Woh and Saand Ki Aankh in which she plays characters from the interiors of India. In a conversation with BT, Bhumi talks about her Haryanvi lineage, her insecurities, fears and a special friend who she is being linked to. Excerpts:
At 30 something, your decision to play 65-year-old Chandro Tomar in Saand Ki Aankh has become a point of conversation on social media. Your thoughts?
When it comes to films, people are entitled to an opinion, and it’s fine. I don’t necessarily have to agree with what everyone says. If a great character, irrespective of her age, comes my way, and I like it, I will take it up. I won’t shy away from it just because someone has an opinion different from mine.
You often get attacked on social media for your posts. Do you ever feel the need to react to them?
I don’t even read most of them, forget about reacting to them. I post a lot of things on a variety of subjects, but I don’t bother with the reactions. The only time I make an exception is when I write something about climate change. People write the dirtiest comments on those posts and I read each one of them. I don’t let them affect me. Strangely, I get trolled every day for my posts on climate conservation. Few would know that I’m very passionate about this subject and I have also started something on my own for this cause. But each time I post something, people write nasty comments. I have never understood why!
In an interview, you said, ‘I was meant to be an actress. I didn’t become one by accident.’ After toiling hard to make it to the silver screen, you’ve not adhered to a single industry norm. And yet, you’re in a space where you have one film releasing every month, for the next few months. There’s a game-plan at work, right?
I can just say that it’s not easy, but it’s fulfilling. I’m just four years old in this business, out of which I spent one year knocking off the weight I had piled on for my debut film. While Sonchiriya didn’t do well for the producers, it did wonders for me. I was appreciated and the eight-month-long prep paid off. I’ve landed myself a chance to work with directors like Abhishek Chaubey, Zoya Akhtar, Karan Johar, Mudassar Aziz, Amar Kaushik and Tushar Hiranandani in the last one year or so. By the end of this year, I will be eight films down. I have the backing of some amazing directors; what else do I need as an actor to survive?
But why have you not consciously tried to break away from the small-town-girl stereotype?
I just seek good roles. It doesn’t matter where they belong. I don’t mind becoming the face of small-town, rural India, because it’s home to such beautiful stories. In this year alone, I’ve gone from playing an urban 19-year-old in one film, to a girl of my own age from Lucknow in another, and a 65-year-old woman from a village Saandh Ki Aankh. I’ve played a woman of every age this year. I indulge in the craft of being an artiste, so, I don’t have a reason to be insecure. God has been kinder to me than most people, who have had to wait for longer to get that one ounce of success. I had some amazing films coming my way right from the word go and it all happened quite fast. I got that appreciation that everyone yearns for. The momentum in my career right now is something else and I have worked hard to get it. It really didn’t happen by chance. I am not saying that I don’t want to break the stereotype you are talking about, but the role has to be good enough. I won’t give the nod to a role for the heck of it. In today’s day and age, artistes anyway have enough avenues to display their real selves to the audience, so there’s no stress as such.
What drew you to play the 65-year-old sharp shooter, Chandro Tomar, in Saand Ki Aankh?
When director Tushar Hiranandani narrated the film to me, I wondered what he wanted me to play. There’s very little about Chandro and Prakashi daadis’ youth in the film. He told me that he wants me to play Chandro Tomar throughout the film. I felt it’s a chance of a lifetime to play someone who has had such an inspiring journey. It’s an endearing story about two grannies who, after living their life behind a veil in Johri Bagpath, decided to become sharp shooters at 65. They broke the shackles of patriarchy for their daughters and grand-daughters. They’ve uplifted some 50,000 children by now. Their life and journey prove that merit can take you places at any age. This could have become a dark, intense film about social imbalance, but the writers made sure it’s not. These women didn’t suffer violence or oppression. It was a matter of fact for them that women are given lesser importance than men. These daadis accepted social inequality as their way of life. Meri naani ne woh sab dekha hai; these women don’t even realise if they have their own dreams and aspirations. Things began to change with my mother’s generation because my grand-dad was in the army. My mother led a different life.
You trained in shooting a gun. There are also videos that show how Taapsee Pannu and you spent time with Prakashi and Chandro. Apart from the prosthetic make-up, how challenging was the prep?
Prakashi and Chandro daadi are so different. Taapsee and I fit their parts well because coincidentally, we’re like them in a lot of ways. Chandro daadi thinks a lot before acting on something, and Prakashi, acts on impulse. Taapsee and I are like that in real life. We picked up the spirit of leading life from them. At times, Taapsee and I spent time with the daadis together and sometimes, we met them alone, too. I knew of them. They belong to the region my mother comes from. I saw a lot of their videos and spent time with them before playing the part.
You’ve never really spoken about your Haryanvi lineage…
Actually, playing Chandro daadi is a tribute to my granny. I have put so much of her in this character, apart from real character references. Recently, I saw the film with my family, and my mom told me that she could see my naani in me. My naani was a lot like Chandro dadi — strong, intelligent, witty and funny. If you look at grandparents, after an age, they become so pure and cleansed. I felt that purity at this age; it’s a rare experience. I am a half-Maharashtrian and half-Haryanvi, and that is the reason I felt more pressure while playing the role. I don’t know the language and my mother is a theth Haryanvi, who is very proud of her roots. Playing roles that belong to your lineage can be very difficult. I couldn’t go wrong with the language, although it’s Hindi-laced in the film.
When you make decisions like playing a character twice your age, do you fear that this could be a professional risk?
Of course, I was scared. When I was signing up for Saand Ki Aankh, I was told that I was making a mistake and it’s a silly choice. I plunged into the film with my gut instinct. How often do you get a chance to play such characters? I am glad that I always land a role which is different from the herd. I understand that people who advise you against a film also have your best interest at heart, but Sonchiriya taught me that when you make a decision, stick to it and own up to the outcome. The hit-flop aspect stops affecting you and you move on. Today, for a filmmaker, talent is more valuable than anything else. In the last eighteen months or so, I’ve switched between so many characters that at one point, I had forgotten what I really look like. I had bouts of sickness and fatigue, but I didn’t want to stop, and I didn’t, because it would have annoyed me a lot. I’m not scared to try something new and challenging where my prep is far more than chopping my locks.
You’ve not been home for more than a month this year. But rumour has it that you’ve been seen hanging out with actor-producer Jackky Bhagnani in the city, and there’s something more to this than meets the eye…
I don’t react to such things because there is no truth to it. I have read the most bizarre things about my whereabouts. Often, I’ve not been in Mumbai and I’ve still been spotted in the city, hanging out with someone or coming out of someone else’s car. It’s so random and bizarre. If there is fodder for speculation, I can understand, but baseless stories are beyond me. I have known Jackky from before I became an actress. We go back 10 years. I can’t ruin my friendship over short-lived gossip. It’s a rare, beautiful friendship. So, whenever I read something stupid, I just speak to him about it and move on.
So, there’s no time to fall in love?
I have to tell my mother to find me a boy because I don’t have the time for it. I don’t miss being in a relationship right now. Actually, I don’t have the bandwidth to invest in another human relationship. The ones in my life are enough to keep me happy.
I don’t mind being the face of small town India, it’s home to great stories-Bhumi Pednekar
