Fatima Sana Shaikh Gets Candid About Female Portrayal In 바카라˜Dhak Dhak바카라™, Playing Indira Gandhi In 바카라˜Sam Bahadur바카라™

In an exclusive chat with Outlook, the actress shared about the feedback for 바카라˜Dhak Dhak바카라™, collaborating with a female-led cast and playing Indra Gandhi in 바카라˜Sam Bahadur바카라™. Excerpts from the interview: 

바카라˜Dhak Dhak바카라™ puts a spotlight on genuine female friendships. What was the feedback?

We have been very lucky because everyone who has seen the film has liked it. Everyone has written well about the film, and they have got the essence and connected to the core emotions of the film. In the end, when you finish the film, you would feel that you connected with it and the gender does not matter. There are so many layers to a person, and that is what the film바카라™s writers, Tarun and Parijaat, have made sure to blend it beautifully.  

How was it to work with a female led team, specially with Tapsee Pannu as a producer? 

I had a blast working with the team, with such wonderful actors, including Ratna ma바카라™am and Dia. It was a tough schedule, across Delhi to Manali, in extreme weather. But if you have a team that believes it in a story like this about four females with no big stars, nothing like it. Both Taapsee and Pranjal Khandhdiya, the producers, believed in it. So you feel happy that you are able to explore such a script. It is a great experience for an actor. 

Be it 바카라˜Thank you For Coming바카라™ or 바카라˜Dhak Dhak바카라™, do you think cinema is finally accepting female portrayals? Were you apprehensive anytime? 

Bilkul bhi nahi. I feel that initially a lot of female-led films were made. Then in the 80s and the 90s, there was a shift. But after that, there have been films with female leads, including 바카라˜Queen바카라™. Good stories, they do travel. It takes time for society to accept a change but you keep challenging them. If the conversation is happening in society, then it would be in the films. When I approach films, I don바카라™t do it on the basis of fear. I do it because it excites me and that바카라™s the story I want to do. So, if I was even offered 바카라˜Thank you For Coming바카라™, if I liked it, I would have done it. 

How important are female friendships to you in a space where you work in cut throat competition? 

Sanya Malhotra is a good friend of mine. Shreya Dubey, the DOP of 바카라˜Thar바카라™, is a dear friend. Ria Singh, the director, and Shonali Bose too. So, if you connect with someone on a human level, you tend to treasure all these female friendships. In fact, before Sanya, I did not have too many female friends. And now I have realised, it is a different community. The support system is really strong, and you relate to so many things. Both men and women have different perspectives about a lot of things, for instance, even if they are feminists. In stories, there are often stereotypes. A parsi or a Punjabi would speak a certain way, so you need stories like these, to explore different forms of emotions. So you need to break that pattern with more films like these.

Do you ever feel that a film about female friendships/protagonists doesn바카라™t get the same initial hype as one with male protagonists?

No, not at all. Like if you talk about 바카라˜Jee Le Zaraa바카라™, everyone is excited about it. Everyone knows the actresses, so it is not about a female-led film but also who is cast in the film. It is also about the business module now because it has changed, and it is constantly evolving for everyone, the producer or the studio, to even gauge what is working and what is not. Yes, there should be more support but I am not putting any money. It바카라™s on the business right? There is so much content, both in theatres and OTT. So it is complicated. I wouldn바카라™t say the promotional strategy is based on it being a female-led film. Also, all of us are fairly new in terms of stardom. We are not stars, stars. It is a mid-sized budget film. So, we all need to fight and focus on smaller films as well. Also, COVID has changed everything. 

The teaser of 바카라˜Sam Bahadur바카라™ is out, and you look convincing as Indira Gandhi. What did you do differently to play a role, which has been explored widely? 

I was apprehensive in the start because I did not know if I could do it. It is too big a character, a personality. Everyone knows Indira Gandhi, there has been so much content out there. So either you pick from the material out there or just take the spirit of that personality and play the part. But doing something like this with the right director makes it worth the while. Maybe she is seeing something that I don바카라™t see. If Meghna Gulzar is saying trust me, I would actually end up saying okay.