"I still love all my jhatka-matkas in Hindi movies. I don't want to do any rona-dhona films" - Sameera Reddy 
By IndiaFM News Bureau, April 2, 2007 - 11:57 IST
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After doing masala Bollywood flicks like Musafir and Naksha, Sameera Reddy stunned everyone with her performance in Bengali film
Kaalpurush, which she did with National Award-winning director Buddhadeb Dasgupta. And now, she is doing a Bong film with him yet again. Then there’s also
Mira Nair’s short film on Aids commissioned by the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation.
Dodging between mainstream and parallel cinema, the smoldering actress confirms that she wants the best of both worlds!
Working with Buddhadeb Dasgupta would have been a different experience as compared to other Bollywood filmmakers…
You bet it! He is world renowned, especially on the international festivals circuit. Working with him has been fantastic because he has won so many awards. So to be
very honest, I was a bit intimidated when I started off, but it has been a real learning experience from the first film to the second. He taught me a lot during our first film
and by the second film, it was a smooth sail.
And the association happens once again
Well dada saab just loved me in the first film and the second script had already been given to me. He already told me that he wanted to do his second film with
me.
What does the Bengali title sound like?
The film is titled Ami, Iyasin Aar Aamar Madhubala (which means Me, Iyasin and Madhubala). The English title for foreign festivals is ‘The
Voyeurs’
Bengali cinema is not really commercial.
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So is the film about voyeurism?
Yes, it is. It’s a fantastic script because it deals with the fact that today a person’s private life is invaded. It is a very sweet story which deals with a very harsh topic.
Bengali cinema is not really commercial. It is very arty cinema and has a very subtle way of dealing with emotions and expressions.
What is the Madhubala connection?
I play the role of a woman who is supposed to be the impression of yesteryear actress Madhubala. She comes from a small town to become an actress. Her dreams get
shattered when she sees how the real world is today, for someone who is not ready for the city life. It is a very beautiful role and it is also to do with a person’s private
phase, and how today due to cameras, internet, webcams and all the modern technology, one doesn’t have any privacy. Iyasin, the guy who falls in love with me, is
obsessed with Madhubala. He has never loved any woman in his life because he believes that he can’t love anyone else but her. I am the first girl he observes in whom
he can see Madhubala – in her face, in her eyes, in the way she moves and dances.
Who has played the role of Iyasin?
Iyasin is played by a guy named is Amitabho. He is an actor from Kolkata.
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The film talks about why some people want to delve into other’s personal lives, because they don’t have a life of their
own.
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Voyeurism is a very sensitive issue, which not many people are aware of. How has it been dealt with?
The director has dealt with it very sensitively. He is not accusing the person who is putting the camera in my room. He is not portraying me as the victim. In the film he
has basically explained “why”. This man is just in love with me and he doesn’t know how to approach me. He is a very lonely man. It is very beautiful because it talks
about why some people want to delve into other’s personal lives, because they don’t have a life of their own. So the director has showed both points of view.
Did you have any trouble speaking in Bengali, considering you’re South Indian?
Although I don’t know Bengali, I love it and I think it is a very sweet language. I delivered a 24-line dialogue in Bengali – in one take. It was 8 pages long because every
word had to be translated for me since it was very important. The director wanted it in one take. It was so difficult – I was panicking before the shot! But what is
amazing is that when you get into the character, the lines just come to you and flow.
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When I see a rikshawalla playing my song I feel very proud of that.
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Bengali films or Hindi films – what do you prefer?
The reason I do Bong cinema is just for the love of acting. But I still love all my jhatka-matkas in my Hindi movies. Today when I see a rikshawalla playing
my song, and when I see the janta like my films, I feel very proud of that. It is so much fun to do shows and stage performances and people really love you. I go to
an airport and meet these little kids who come and do my dance steps. It is so touching! It is so amazing how Hindi movies give you the ability to reach out to every
section of society. Hindi is really the universal language. So it is not about preference. It is really two different worlds. One is my commercial Hindi movie world and
Bengali cinema is another world altogether. I love Bengali cinema but today, everything I am is because of Hindi cinema.
You’re also doing a short film on AIDS with Mira Nair.
This is a series of four films directed by Mira Nair, Vishal Bhardwaj, Farhan Akhtar, and Santosh Sivan. All four of these short films have been commissioned by the Bill
& Melinda Gates Foundation which they have set up in India. Mirabai Films is going to be producing all four. So it started off with Mira’s film called The
Migration, in which I play the role of a housewife. It is a fantastic way to make the public aware about how AIDS is spread. Mira has traced the path of how AIDS
can pass and through what sections of the society it can travel.
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It is so amazing how Hindi movies give you the ability to reach out to every section of society.
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How did you get onto Mira Nair’s wishlist?
I have known Mira since the time of Monsoon Wedding. I was considered for that film, but it didn’t work out. I think she saw my work in Kaalpurush and
she was totally taken aback by how different I can look. After seeing my work in that film, she said that she could see nobody else for the role in The Migration.
That was a great compliment coming from Mira Nair!
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I was considered for Monsoon Wedding
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Mira Nair would again have been a distinctive experience
What is amazing about Mira is that she is a very passionate and aggressive director. Her style is totally different, and I think she made me go to areas in my mind that
nobody has pushed me to. There is a line that even I don’t cross but she made me cross it. I have definitely learned a lot from her.
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There is a line that even I don’t cross but Mira Nair made me cross even that
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Have you seen her recent release The Namesake?
Especially after doing The Migration, I promised her that I would go and watch The Namesake. I was there for the premiere. I can tell you it is one of the
best films I have seen this year. It is unbelievable. Tabu is absolutely outstanding.
Do you think our audience is finally ready to accept films that deal with serious issues?
I think the masses pay the amount for a ticket because they want to be entertained and they want to come out feeling like they got their money’s worth. I don’t think they
are interested in harsh reality. Although a film like Taxi No. 9211 dealt with the reality of a taxi driver, it was treated in a very fun-loving commercial manner. So a
film like that will appeal more. I think that the masses don’t want to deal with films like The Namesake or any other serious films. Why should they? They are dealing
with reality themselves.
Then where do you think the market for serious cinema lies?
I think that it is opening up now, but only for the multiplexes and that is a good thing. I think that commercial cinema, even like blockbuster movies now-a-days don’t
work. People are fed up and bored of the same thing. I think our Hindi movies are packaging and re-packaging the same thing. There is no change.
Does that mean we will see you doing more parallel cinema?
No, I think mainstream is my first love. But I will do mainstream which makes sense. I will do films that connect with the youth. I love to do these crazy comedy films
which have energy, but I am also looking for films that mean something. I don’t want to do any rona-dhona films.
Speaking of your mainstream Bollywood films, what comes next from you?
Next is Firoz Nadiadwala’s Fool N Final. I play a Punjabi girl who gets lost in Dubai and it is a very sweet role. It is a multi-starrer so everybody plays an
important part in the film. Fool N Final is a very fun film. It will release by the end of May.
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I think that the masses don’t want to deal with films like The Namesake or any other serious films. Why should they?
They are dealing with reality themselves.
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What about Abbas-Mustan’s Race?
Race should release by Diwali. That is with Saif Ali Khan, Akshaye Khanna, Katrina Kaif and Bipasha Basu. And I can’t really say anything about this film because the
producers have asked us to keep totally mum!
You’re doing multi-starrers then. Do you have a prominent role?
In multi-starrers it is really not about prominence. It is about adding to a good script. Nobody can get up and argue saying that I have a smaller role. We all add to it in our
own way and we make a great film.
What’s the status of Tigmanshu Dhulia’s Ghulami?
I have been told that the producer is trying to recover as he was very unwell. So until that comes about the film is on hold. But Tigmanshu and I are already having talks
about other films. We are trying to move to something better.
Finally, is Aneez Bazmi’s Benaam coming anytime soon?
Everything is ready and I think the promos will be on air in another month. It is a great film and Aneezji is rocking after No Entry.
But why such a long delay of four years?
It is sad that it took such a long time. But everything happens for a good reason. Two years back when the film started, the music director of the film Himesh
Reshammiya was not that well known but today everyone is booting for him. So I think all of us have moved in better areas and I would say it happened for the best.
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Sameera Reddy’s first crush
