Nushrratt Bharuccha started off with a series of romantic comedies but then the flip side was getting typecast and she was seen voicing out her concern and apprehensions. However, she managed to break away from the stereotypical image and is now seen playing a variety of characters in her recent films and web series as well. The actress impressed the audiences and critics with her performances in Chhalaang, and Ajeeb Daastaans, an anthology she was part of. A few months back she made headlines for bagging the role of a condom sales executive in Raaj Shaandilya’s Janhit Mein Jaari besides being part of big ticket Akshay Kumar's Ram Setu in a powerful role.
Currently, she is in the limelight for essaying an eight-month pregnant woman in horror flick Chhorii, her first solo lead set to premiere on Amazon Prime Video. In the film, her character Sakshi along with her husband is forced to seek shelter with an old couple in an isolated house in a secluded village where she experiences events involving paranormal activity. The old couple seem to be dealing with spirits and evil forces which are said to be behind her and her unborn child. The film is a remake of an award-winning Marathi film, Lapachhapi that featured Pooja Sawant and Vikram Gaikwad in the lead.
Bharuccha says she is a big-time consumer of horror films and she picked Chhorii not just because she wanted to explore a new genre but also because of the script’s different narrative of horror.
“I watch a lot of horror movies and it is a great space. I think that western countries make wonderful stories around horror. We have done some good films here but we have not raised the bar beyond and somewhere we got stuck in a similar pattern which is not exciting for me as much. I picked this film because I liked the story a lot,” says the actress. And though she was excited about the new genre, she says it was equally daunting and a difficult experience shooting the film. “Now I can say that this is the most difficult film I have attempted. Before I did Chhorii I would say Akashvani was my most difficult film which was another dark subject. But Chhorii is probably the toughest film after Akashvani that I have done,” she says.
While the narrative of the film is anchored in horror it also carries a perspective, “That I hope the audiences will relate to. It is not just a horror film, it is a responsible horror film. It’s communicating a social evil, something we should take cognisance of and bring a change. I am in the public eye, there are a lot of people being influenced by me and I better have the right influence on them. Hopefully, the audience connects in a way where they take something back from the film, and, of course, also get scared,” she says. Interestingly, Bharuccha is hoping that director Vishal Furia, who has also helmed the original Lapachhapi, has put more surprises and thrills in the Hindi one as Furia has mentioned.
Also, having the same director for both Marathi as well as Hindi is a big advantage, she feels. “If the film is an adaptation and you are telling a different story then by all means a new director with different vision would work for the project. But if we are doing a remake in the purest form of remake then any actor would want the same director to do it. Vishal Sir is so well-tuned to the film, the soul of it, the purity of it, and on a larger scale what that film should achieve. Nobody could be so honest with it but the same director. It is an absolute boon and advantage that Vishal sir is making this film,” says Bharuccha, who, however, decided not to watch the original.
“I have not seen the Marathi film, I have only heard that it did very well, was critically acclaimed and that a lot of people connected with the emotion of the film. I told the director that neither do I want to watch the original nor do I want to read the Hindi script that he has written. Till date I haven’t read Chhorii’s script. I have only read till the portion where ‘Sakshi’ reaches this location, the secluded spot because she has dialogues till then and after that she has very few dialogues. I had no idea what would happen in the film after that. I wanted to explore this new method because I feel in horror films your reactions have to be natural and organic. If you already know what is going to happen then there is no fun. It may not look fake but I won’t enjoy doing it. One can give a realistic reaction and that may work for certain actors but I wanted to see what comes out of me in the process. I have never encountered a ghost, or spirit in real life so I don’t know what that reaction could be and wanted that reaction to come as a first in this film as Sakshi or Nushrratt. Vishal agreed to my method but he told me that if at some point not knowing was not bringing out the best in me then he will tell me, so somewhere I was completely hinged on him for my performance,” she says.
Further, talking about the challenges, Bharuccha says the first line of the script itself scared her off. “The description of my character – ‘Eight-month pregnant lady... Now what is that like? How do I know? So we thought of a lot of ways to bring that out. The prosthetic stomach was made much before the shoot began and I wore it for 20 to 25 days for all 24 hours. I would sleep, go to the washroom, meet people, eat my meals…do everything while wearing the prosthetic. I wanted to understand the difficulties in leading day to day life. But emotionally and mentally how much I tried I wouldn’t be perfect because every mother goes through different emotions and has a different journey. The best that I could do was talk to women who have been mothers about their experiences and try and see what I can use from that,” said the actress.
Even as Bharuccha is happy that makers are approaching her with off-beat themes she would like to give credit to the ‘evolved’ audience and their choices. “Not just for me but for many female actors, stories these days are better accepted by audiences and there is a demand for it. People want to watch what is happening in a woman’s life who is either pregnant or went on a honeymoon all by herself. Or, who has a father she takes care of and is in no hurry to get married..something like Piku. People want to know these stories and which is why such films are being made. It is the audiences who are making it happen more than the industry,” she says.
Chhorii also features Mita Vashisht, Rajesh Jais, Saurabh Goyal, and Yaaneea Bharadwaj. A joint venture by Bhushan Kumar, Krishnan Kumar, Vikram Malhotra, Jack Davis, and Shikhaa Sharma, the film premieres on Amazon Prime Video on 26 November.
Seema Sinha is a Mumbai-based mainstream entertainment journalist who has been covering Bollywood and television industry for over two decades. Her forte is candid tell-all interviews, news reporting and newsbreaks, investigative journalism and more. She believes in dismissing what is gossipy, casual, frivolous and fluff.
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