Bollywood actress Hrishitaa Bhatt, who was last seen playing Maya in ‘Miss Tanakpur Haazir Ho’ plays the role of a Bengali woman in Vivek Agnihotri’s ‘just released Junooniyat’. Jaideep Pandey in conversation with the 34 year old, who is more popularly known as Niharika Singh in Uttar Pradesh.
Tell us about your role in ‘Junooniyat’.
Well, Junooniyat’ is basically a love story and I am playing Mishti in the movie, who is a Bengali girl and has lost her husband at a very early age. And when you will see me and Yami on screen, you will feel as if we are sisters, but Mishti is Yami’s brother’s wife. I am a catalyst in the movie who plays the lead role in taking Yami and Pulkit’s love-story forward. And although it is a guest appearance, I am sure people will like and remember it.
‘Junooniyat’ is a kind of love-story that has been put forward by Vivek Agnihotri in a completely different manner. And I can say that someone like Vivek ji only can come up with such a script.
Your experience working with Vivek Agnihotri?
I think he is a wonderful director and I always wanted to work with him. And when he told me about the role, I agreed to do it. It was an amazing experience working with him, will surely like to do more work with him in future.
One co-actor you had the best chemistry with.
I think that is for my audience to tell me because frankly I really cannot be selective because I think as an actor the first key rule is to have a chemistry with your co-actor in the movie, no matter what role you are playing, be of a love interest, or a daughter, or a wife. So, I think chemistry is something that should be lucid on screen and bring out a kind of bond that the two people share. I think the audience is the better judge when it comes to chemistry with co-stars.
How was your experience working with Yami and Pulkit.
The experience of working with both of them has been excellent. In-fact many people on the sets were surprised to see the bonding between me and Yami, because normally we don’t find such good chemistry between the two female co-stars.
Any actress you grew up admiring.
I grew up admiring Nutan ji a lot, Then I was quite young. And I remember that I loved watching Waheeda ji (Waheeda Rehman I have been a dancer and loved watching her since the age I can understand what’s happening in the film.
To watch anybody dance or act looked so nice and beautiful. I think I really looked up to these women beside there are lot more. Also Sridevi and Madhuri because I have grown up watching them. I can say that I love Kajol, she is wonderful. So for that matter, lot of actress, I would say. I think Neetu Singh was also a different kind of an actress in her time and yes I think somewhere they have all inspired me.
What is more important to you while signing a film. Script or the director?
Well I would say director as well as script because even if the script is great and the director is not good then the script can go wrong. So it really does matter that both should be good at the time. The director could be a fresher also, but at the same time it has to be a blend of both. The Director is the captain of the ship and the script is the ship itself.
You will seen performing on “Mast Hawa” in ‘Shorgul’. Would you agree that a political drama, especially when it is based on UP and Bihar, is incomplete without an item number.
Somehow I don’t know why but yes, in a cliched sense. And moreover such stories do not have a lot of scope for music and dance, especially if there is no element of a love story. So, to break the monotony and to add some Masala, they put in an item number.
How would you rate Tigmanshu Dhulia as a director?
Well I am nobody to rate him. I have always had respect for his work from the day I met him. I think now he is somebody. In-fact while we were shooting for ‘Haasil’ (2003), he hardly spoke because he was so new and he had just done some television, but he was brilliant as always. And I think he is going to be one of those who will be making a mark in the Indian cinema. (TWF)
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