“It is intriguing to play this big mystery called Naureen” – Prachi Desai on Azhar

May 5, 2016 - 12:42 PM IST

Her last big release was Policegiri [2013] with Sanjay Dutt as her co-star. Post that she was seen in an item number 'Awari' [Ek Villain (2014)]. Ever

“It is intriguing to play this big mystery called Naureen” – Prachi Desai on Azhar

since then, she has been missing from the big screen. However, her continued presence on the social media and other events has ensured that she has never been off the public eye. Now that she is

back with her Once Upon A Time In Mumbaai co-star Emraan Hashmi for Azhar, it is good to see Prachi Desai back in movies. This isn't all as before the end of year, she would also be

seen in Rock On!! 2. Over to the pretty girl who doesn't seem to have aged in 10 years.

2 years. A long wait, isn't it?

(Smiles) But I have been right here and being around. Yes, not being seen on the big screen for two years can make people wonder where a person has gone. That said, I am busy. Though not in films,

I have been doing my things. Unfortunately, I lost out on some time as films that I had signed up didn't work out. There was Badtameez Dil, a Balaji' film, which didn't happen. Then there

were a couple of independent films that would have been really fabulous had they been made. Things didn't roll on time. Nevertheless, I got busy with pre-production of Rock On!! 2 and

Azhar last year. I knew that that would get rolling.

So guess 2015 kept you busy right through.

All of 2015 I have been shooting for these two films. There was this beautiful schedule of Rock On!! 2 in Shillong. Later, I was in Hyderabad for two months in order to shoot for

Azhar. It was an interesting year for me. I just think that in times like these you realize how time consuming making films is. There is so much that goes around taking things, rolling them

and getting the final product in place. As actors we are involved and know what is happening. However, people who are outside are a bit clueless about it.

Coming to Azhar, what was that one thing which made you go for it?

The most intriguing thing for actually taking it up without a second thought was that I was getting to play this big mystery called Naureen. The whole world knows about Azhar but Naureen is a

mystery. I thought it was exciting to put a face to the name. I was getting to play a real life character. Now this was different because every real life character that most of us actors have

played are the ones who have actually been in limelight. They are popular figures, film-stars or sports personalities. However, Naureen is one of the only people about whom the only known thing is

that she was Azhar's wife. Nothing beyond that.

In fact (director) Tony D'Souza tells me that it is one of the most important roles in the film.

You know, when I got a call from Tony, until I met him I only kept trying to figure out which part was he going to offer me. I was over the moon when he said Naureen. I thought I was the luckiest

person as I chanced upon the best part. It is most pivotal, is the lengthiest and is also a constant role in the film. Naureen is shown so nuanced in the film. There is such beauty about it. At the

age of 16, she was married to Azhar. She was his backbone. She saw him growing from being a team member to the captain. When we are putting Azhar's story out there, I think the story of the most

important person in his life is amazing.

And a love story at that...

Exactly. She was with him throughout. She always encouraged him and was there in his highs and lows during the most crucial and important years of his life from the late 80s to the 90s. They were

married for 9 years. It is so beautiful to tell people the true story about two people madly in love with each other. You don't get to see such silent love stories in films today. We have tapped on

to the late 80s and early 90s. This is their old world romance in the charm of Hyderabad. They were both so young when they married at such a tender age. There are so many personal things. They

were discovering each other.

How have you discovered Emraan all over again, so many years after working with him in Once Upon A Time In Mumbaai?

There is an amazing transition that I see in Emraan. There is a world of difference in Emraan from OUATIM to Azhar. I would say that everything that has changed about him has changed for the

better. He has definitely calmed down a lot from the past. He always had been a hassle free person and I think now he has also become a way more practical. He is much more compassionate and patient

in life today.