I am happy and grateful and so proud just to be a part of this film,” are Kirti Kulhari’s first words to t2. The actress — who made an eyeball-grabbing debut in Shaitan a few years ago — knocks it out of the park as Falak in Aniruddha Roy Chowdhury’s (Tony) Pink.
Congratulations for Pink! When you were making the film, did you ever think it would become so big?
When I started with the film, I knew it dealt with a subject that’s very important and relevant. Being in the hands of people like Tonyda and Shoojit Sircar, I knew it would be handled sensitively. Generally, people have pre-conceived notions about such films — ‘Achha, uss tarah ki film hai’… ‘Achha, phir se bhaashan-baazi hogi’— but I knew with them involved, it would be a story well told. But honestly, I never knew then that it would have this effect. There are so many moments in the film where we stopped acting, everything just felt so real. I think my belief in the film kept growing stronger as we kept shooting. Art doesn’t have to be flawless… but art, if made with right intentions, honesty and purity, has the power to touch people and create revolutions.
During the shoot, especially in the court scenes, we could see how everyone present in the unit was so affected by it. I knew that this is not normal, this doesn’t happen all the time.
From the time I finished shooting till September 11, I hadn’t seen anything of the film. When I came out of the first screening, I simply couldn’t stop crying for the next 15-20 minutes. I hugged Shoojit and Tonyda and I just kept crying… I was so overwhelmed by what had been created. I just knew that this is it… this is going to be a rage.
And that’s now been corroborated. Before this, I hadn’t seen people going on their Facebook pages and writing whole speeches on the film, just sharing how it’s affected them. Some people have come up to say that Pink has touched their soul. I always knew that it was a film that would affect the viewer… it’s not a come-and-gone thing… it will stay with you. When something touches your soul, that’s when you think, that’s when you question and that’s when change begins... inside you.
How much of Falak is Kirti?
I think the emotional outbursts she goes through are very me. There is an inner strength to Falak that I also have in me. Falak faces the world and stands by the people she loves. That’s also me. And the fact that she’s a rebel, that she’s in a relationship with someone who is almost her father’s age and that she’s defying the so-called norms of society to follow her heart… that’s so much like me. I always follow my heart. Falak is also very practical….
Among the three girls, Falak’s is often the voice of reason…
Exactly, exactly! But in life, I am not so much the voice of reason in most situations (laughs). But that’s improved a little after I have played Falak. But overall, I am more emotional than reasonable.
On screen, Taapsee, Andrea and you looked like you had been friends for years. How did you achieve that?
Oh, I didn’t know them at all before the film… Andrea is anyway new to Bollywood. Taapsee I had heard of, but I hadn’t seen her work. I first met them all when we started workshopping. I always believe that every film, at least the ones that want to make sense, should invest time in workshops. And more than anything else, I am an actor. So even if I hated Taapsee and Andrea in person, if I am a good actor, I should be able to portray that I love them and feel for them. But thankfully, this wasn’t the case and I think we all just knew that we were there for a bigger cause. We were very clearly told that if you three girls don’t work together as a unit, then the film will not work. And that’s what the film is about — it’s their bond, their friendship, their love.
We guys were great together, both on screen and off. We would chill out together and go shopping and for dinner whenever we got a chance. Even now, that we are together for promotions, Taapsee and I play badminton and squash together. We still share the same bond and we know that Pink, for all three of us, is something so, so special.
Which scene disturbed you the most while being Falak?
My outburst in the court scene (in which Falak says the girls took money from the boys) would definitely be one. We had shot the first half majorly in Delhi and there was a little break after that. I was told about this scene beforehand, but they were still writing it. I started feeling the pressure then because I realised that it’s probably the most important scene of the film... it suddenly gives a different turn to the story.
Firstly, I was like ‘Why would we say that when we haven’t done it?!’ It took me some time to convince myself about the scene. I had to understand that if Falak is saying and doing this, then where is she coming from. I had to get into that emotional space. But one thing about me as an actor is that though I workshop a lot, when I come on set, I really don’t know how I am going to do a scene. I know the technical aspects and my dialogues very well, but as an actor, I leave space for some magic to happen. Once ‘action’ is called out, I just let go. We rehearsed the court scene a couple of times, but when we actually went in for the take, I had no clue how I would do it. From ‘action’ to the end, I just went with the flow and magic just happened. Even after ‘cut’, I couldn’t stop crying because I was so moved both as an actress and a woman.
Tonyda has told t2 that he admires your range as an actress and that he would love to work with you again. Is the feeling mutual?
For sure! He’s a very easy person to be around. He’s very open to what you have to say… I haven’t seen even a hint of an ego in that man. It’s a very rare quality to have. Tonyda has a very strong sense of observation and visual sense and he is very sure about what he wants from a scene. He sometimes found it difficult to express to us in terms of Hindi and stuff, but a big quality about him as a director is that he explains the basics to his actors and then he just lets us be. With him, it’s always like, ‘It’s your field… do what you feel like. I will capture it’. Above all, he’s a very good human being. He loves his food and now I am just waiting to go to his place and get Indrani (Tony’s wife) to cook a Bengali meal for us. Indrani got us some sweets in the middle of a workshop that were simply out of this world… but now I am waiting to be a guest at Tonyda’s house and be treated to all that he’s promised us.
Post-Pink, the expectations from you are sky-high. How will you top this?
(Laughs) I have no clue how I am going to better this. I was speaking to someone who told me that don’t be burdened by the success of this film… this too shall pass. I am doing my best to stay away from all this pressure and I remember telling Tonyda yesterday that every creative person needs to take the positives and negatives out of an experience and move on. With Pink, I know I have shocked a lot of people both within and outside the industry. And that’s a definite high.
Kirti’s Falak touched a chord in me because.... Tell t2@abp.in
