Tulip Joshi returns after three years as Pooja Bhatt’s leading lady. But more importantly, she is Dhokha’s suicide bomber. t2 caught up with the stunning lady for a chat...

On not doing movies for the last three years: It was a conscious break after Mere Yaar Ki Shaadi Hai, Matrubhoomi and Dil Maange More. I was not keeping very well and I decided to take my time. Now I am raring to go and want to do all kinds of movies.

Out of sight is not always out of mind: I think it works both ways. Yes, out of sight can be out of mind but one can also look at it in a way that here is somebody who is coming back all fresh and fired-up. So it can work to my advantage also.

How she got Dhokha: It’s a unique story, really. One of Pooja’s assistants called me to set up a meeting with her. But then she never got back. I went to Hyderabad and shot a Telugu film for over a month. Then I came back and decided to check with the secretary whether they had cast someone. She said that no one had been cast and Pooja would still like to meet me. I met her, she offered me the film, and I jumped right in.

I like such roles: I would always like to work in films like Dhokha. I took it up as a challenge because I realised right at the outset that playing a Muslim suicide bomber would be quite a daring feat. But the film had a strong message to give and it is the kind of film I would like to watch as an audience. There has to be something in the project that would appeal to me. It either has to be the director or the banner or the co-actor. There are so many scripts floating around that one has to choose the right ones.

The role in Dhokha: I can’t reveal much because that would mean giving away the storyline. I play a Kashmiri Muslim girl named Sarah who is married to a guy named Zayed (Muzammil Ibrahim). It seems like a very happy marriage but there are things which Sarah hasn’t shared with her husband and which will only be revealed once she dies in the bomb blast.

I am not Sarah: When anyone is put under extreme conditions like Sarah was done in the film, she may react the way she does. I may not react the way Sarah does but I can identify with her. Now it remains to be seen whether audiences react to her decision positively.

On Pooja Bhatt: It was a delight working with her. I have never worked with a woman director before. I had a good time working on Dhokha and that’s thanks to her. Being an actress herself she understands how another actress thinks. Also her planning is meticulous. It’s not a gender thing, I genuinely find her to have a very clear vision.

Forthcoming films: I am doing Rohit Jugraj’s untitled film opposite Kunal Khemu where I play an aspiring journalist. And there’s Arindam Mitra’s Shoonya ready for release.

Pratim D. Gupta

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