Pooja Kumar, who starred in Kamal Haasan’s Vishwaroopam films, is now Anamika, a love-deprived married woman who finds love outside wedlock. The US-based actress, who won the title Miss India USA in 1995, talks from across the Pacific over video conference about her latest venture, directed by Priyadarshan, which is a part of a quartet of shorts called Forbidden Love on Zee5.

You are born and brought up in the US. How did you develop your Indian cultural roots strongly enough to work here?

I was born in Missouri but I got the best of both worlds. My parents migrated to the US in 1970. My mother, who is from Lucknow, loved cinema and dance. She introduced me to the artistic world in a fun way, At the age of three, I was dancing to Madhuban mein Radhika to my mother’s choreography. She believed that one had to learn from the best. So some years down the line, she took me to Pandit Birju Maharaj in Delhi. For the next three years, I would be back in India for three summer months training in Bharatanatyam.

Was it difficult to decide which industry to focus on — West or East?

At that time, casting was a challenge. They did not have too many brown-skinned roles in the US. After I won Miss India USA in 1995, some opportunities opened up. Even then, the decision had to be taken.

How did a Hindi-speaking girl from the US land up in so many south Indian films?

I either look south Indian or I have some affiliation from my last birth. (laughs) I say, it’s destiny.

How did you land the roles in Vishwaroopam?

Kamal sir saw my work online and contacted my manager. When he gave me the message, I asked him several times: “Are you sure?” A five-minute Skype call with sir is all it took to make me take a flight to Chennai in five days. I had no idea what film it was or what my role was. Later, I learnt it was to be a bilingual film and neither Hindi nor Tamil was my first language. In the US, we are brought up with one language. Here there are so many dialects and three registers — formal, informal and casual. I am still working on my diction.

How was the experience of working with Kamal Haasan?

He is an encyclopaedia of knowledge. He loves cinema. After working with sir, I learnt so much behind the camera as well — the story, about the movie as a whole. Earlier I would look at just my character.

And how did Anamika happen?

I know Priyan (Priyadarshan) sir for more than 20 years. I used to work for ABCL (Amitabh Bachchan Corporation Limited) and hosted the preshow of Miss Universe when it was held in Bangalore in 1996. Priyan sir directed the show. Afterwards, I played the lead in a Tamil remake of Dil Hai ki Maanta Nahin called Kadhal Rojavae. I was 18. I had no idea what I was doing. So I went back to the US to finish studies (graduated with degrees in political science and finance from Washington University). But I always kept in touch with Priyan sir. I kept telling him some day we’d work together. So when he called, I didn’t even hear the story, I said yes. He makes such a variety of movies — comedy, drama, thrillers, from Kaalapani to Virasat — and in so many languages. He gives a lot of scope to his female characters to perform and writes layered emotions.

When did the shoot take place?

Last October. In Pondicherry. We were to shoot this 45-minute film in eight days. So Priyan sir kept saying: “You better be ready”. It was a difficult shoot. People think a woman ought to adjust. But I wanted to show this character in such a light that people would understand how difficult it can be for a woman and empathise with her.

Tell us about your role.

She is a middle-class woman who takes care of the house and her father-in-law, cooks and cleans. But now she is at the crossroads. She has been married for 10 years but her husband is not paying attention to her. She is feeling lost. When Priyan sir told me about the role, I knew I could tell the woman’s side of the story, on how she can lose out on love. She wants something better for her life so she decides to work in a cafe, thinking the extra income would make him happy. She does so many things to make life better for her and her husband but somehow that is not adding up in his head. I wanted to show how a woman can be in a situation where she makes a drastic choice that can hurt her own life, her family, the set-up she has built up. She falls into a trap innocently. I wanted to show how communication is key in any relationship, be it with husband, partner or boyfriend.

How old are Anamika and the boy she comes to like?

She is 34-35. He is 28-29. She is at this stage when she is doing so much yet after 10 years,
she feels she is being taken advantage of. Men should appreciate what women do and vice versa.

Has Indian society progressed enough to discuss women’s sexuality and recognise that she has a right to make choices for the sake of her happiness?

Indian society has definitely changed. And the best way to inspire and influence people is by writing and showing such stories on TV. We still have a long way to go but if we continue on this journey of showing strong, independent women we will be successful. It’s about a mature relationship and how they deal with their challenges and how the husband becomes lazy about his relationship with his wife. Splitting up is not always the solution and the whole idea of the grass being greener on the other side... it’s not! The key is how to keep the relationship alive. Harsh Chhaya, the husband, is not a bad guy. He is not abusive. He is just not interested. How do you keep the interest alive? That is the question.

Pooja Kumar in and as Anamika with Aditya Seal in a scene from the show

Kamal Haasan with Pooja Kumar in a poster of Vishwaroopam 2

How difficult was it to portray the woman’s situation, introduce the new spark in her life and make the story unfold to reach the climax where she makes her choice in just 40 minutes?

It was very difficult and you have to see the film to know if we have succeeded. It’s about a moment in her life. I have given you a backstory about where she is coming from and how she is feeling. When we end the film, our purpose is you’d want to see more.

Are all four films in the quartet of similar duration?

Each film is of a different duration and by different directors but they are all in the 30-to-45 minutes range. They all deal with love and relationships and how to tackle it.

Would you say it was a blessing in disguise that the film got released when people are having to stay home?

We work so hard on all our projects so obviously we want an optimal number of people to watch it. Of course, everyone is home-watching content now. So I am happy people will get time to watch Anamika.

You have done quite a few projects in the West. How was that experience?

The experience of working in America is amazing. Their storytelling is different from what we have in India because their social norms and their attitude towards life are different. So the only difference is in the story. Otherwise, technicians in India are very good. In the US, they have more schools to teach the craft. I wish there were more such institutes in India.