The real-life brother-sister pair of Huma Qureshi and Saqib Saleem pair up on screen for the first time in Dobaara, the Hindi adaptation of the 2013 horror fest Oculus, in which they play siblings on screen.
A t2 chat with Huma on Dobaara, why Bollywood has been a ‘box of chocolates’ for her and her upcoming international debut.

When did you first watch Oculus, from which Dobaara is adapted, and did you get spooked enough?

I first watched Oculus a couple of months ago when I got a call from the makers saying they wanted to make it in Hindi and cast me and Saqib in it. My first thought was, ‘That’s quite cool, ya!’ Anyone who calls me and says that they want to cast me and Saqib together, I always get quite kicked. We’ve always spoken about working together. Saqib, in fact, had watched Oculus when it released a few years ago, but he didn’t want to influence my decision. I watched it on my own at home and really liked it. If I had watched it in the theatre when it released, I am sure I would have been blown.

Though it’s being promoted as a more or less faithful adaptation of Oculus, have any changes been introduced in Dobaara?

Whether they’ve seen Oculus or not, people are finding the look and feel of Dobaara quite interesting. And even those who have seen Oculus, once they watch Dobaara they will realise that there are lots of additions that have been made to the story in Dobaara. The idea has been to take a film which was already so good and make it better.

Saqib and you have grown up together in Delhi and even in Mumbai, you share a home. While working on a film with him for the first time, did you discover anything new about your brother?

Absolutely! You talk to any pair of siblings or even parents and kids for that matter and they will tell you that when you are at home, you have a different mode on and that’s very removed from the kind of mode you have on when you are in the professional space. Saqib and I live in the same house and have the same set of friends, but before Dobaara, I had never seen the professional side of him… how is he on set, how he approaches his work… how sincere he is, what’s his level of dedication like... all these things. Generally, younger brothers always need to be taken care of (laughs), but on set, I saw another side to him — so professional and yet so caring. I am grateful to Dobaara for showing me this facet of my brother, which I probably wouldn’t have otherwise. 

Given the intensity of the characters, would you two carry home the hangover of being Kabir and Natasha?

Not at all, ya! Saqib and I are both jokers (laughs). The moment we would get off the set, we would switch off. I don’t believe in all these things when people say, ‘I was so consumed by my character… I have forgotten myself… my family is having problems with my behaviour’. Sorry, but for me, acting is not rocket science or mumbo-jumbo. I am a spontaneous actor… I switch on and switch off. I never carry back work home. Both of us were very professional, we worked very hard on set, but we were never consumed by it. We were quite the cartoons… once ‘cut’ was called, we would be like, ‘ha-ha hee-hee hoo-hoo’ (laughs).

What was the best bit about sharing screen space with your brother?

You know, it has its pros and cons. Of course, the other person knows you, so there’s a certain comfort level. If any other set of actors had done this film, there would have been a lot of prep to do and a whole lot of workshopping. But here when you are real-life siblings and he knows I love him and I know he’s going to protect me, then that automatically seeps into your characters. When I saw Saqib, I saw my brother… and that was half the job done for the film. I felt it was a real master stroke to cast a real-life brother-sister pair in such an intense film.

The two of you have quite some work behind you, but Dobaara must be getting your friends and family a little more excited?

Oh, they are all very excited! They can’t wait to see it. What they don’t realise is that when the film releases, they will get into trouble because both Saqib and I are going to badger them asking who they thought was better! (Laughs) We will make life miserable for them!

Are you a horror fan or are you the kind who watches a scary film through the gaps of your fingers?

I love horror! The Shining, Let The Right One In and The Conjuring are my favourites. Honestly, I love all kinds of films and I really don’t differentiate on the basis of yeh horror hai, yeh comedy hai, yeh action hai, yeh slice-of-life hai… for me, a good film is a good film. Even while picking a film, I look for two things — whether it has anything new for me to do and whether the film is true to its genre.

You scored a hit with Jolly LLB 2 this year, now you have Dobaara and you make your English film debut with Viceroy’s House, releasing here in August. Has it been a conscious move to mix it up or has it been organic?

Well, as Forrest Gump says, ‘Life is like a box of chocolates, you never know what you are going to get’ (laughs). That’s my motto for life. And that’s actually fun, right? The reason why I became an actor was because I wanted to be other people, push my limits, acquire new skills… that, for me, is the most enjoyable part of this profession. The day I realise I am stagnating, I will stop acting. I always try and mix it up, but there’s no set plan. I just pick up the best from what I get.

So what do you make of the ‘box of chocolates’ that’s come your way so far, especially with all this talk of nepotism?

(Laughs) Well, there is nepotism, there is favouritism… no doubt about that. However, woh bolte hain na ki... ‘Khudi ko kar buland itna ke har taqdeer se pehle Khuda bande se khud poochhey bataa teri raza kya hai!’. What I’m trying to say is that ultimately, no matter what family you come from or what surname you have, if you don’t work hard or don’t have a connect with the audience, then it’s not going to make a difference. Your surname can only carry you that far, beyond that it’s up to you.

We can’t wait to watch you in Viceroy’s House; it must have been a dream working with Gillian Anderson and Hugh Bonneville…

It’s a beautiful film, it’s a human story. It tells the story about India’s Partition and it’s heartbreaking… millions were killed, many more millions were displaced… this is the heartbreaking reality of our country and we carry the scars even today. When Gurinder (Chadha, the director) came up with this script which is about a set of people during that time — their dreams, their lives, their hopes, their loves — I knew I had to be a part of it. In that sense, I couldn’t have asked for a better debut in international cinema… I got to work with an amazing cast, led by Gillian Anderson and Hugh Bonneville… they bring so much passion and experience. I am honoured just to be a part of this film.

And we keep reading about you doing the next Rajinikanth film. Ready for a confirmation yet?

Wait and watch! (Laughs)    

Priyanka Roy