Not a laughing matter

Jasmine Singh

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Television and Punjabi film actress Kavita Kaushik will have to try a wee bit harder to get the Punjabi accent right, but the strong-willed, affable artiste sure knows what ‘to act’ means. She has been living these two words for a long time now, the only thing that has changed is that now she has ‘to act in a comedy film.’

“Well,” smiles Kavita, With FIR, I have proved I can do comedy. I did almost 1500 episodes, and played different characters on the television show, but...” Kavita pauses, assembles and speaks out her thoughts, clear as glass, “...but in Punjabi there is not much scope for an actress, other than playing the glam girl, she barely has much to do.”

And this, by the way, is not an off-hand remark. For Kavita, who has worked in two Punjabi films already and promoting the third one Vadhaiyan Ji Vadhaiyan, for which she is in Chandigarh along with the crew, it  this is not just an observation, but a sad truth. 

“In the narration of the film, my role is substantial and big, but when it comes to the ground reality, actual shoot, things are different. Even when 

I have questioned, I am told, ‘Yahan actresses ke liye zyaada role nahi hota.”

Kavita might not go to the town talking about the sexist attitude of the industry, she only hopes that women artiste realise their worth, and the industry too. “Men are intimidated by strong women. In fact, men would have wiped out our race had they not in their own justification seen some worth in us,” she philosophises, “I really want to act, do substantial roles that challenge me as an actor. And, there are so many women-based stories to be explored,” adds the artiste. The sentiment gets an approving nod from Kavita’s co-actors Binnu Dhillon and Karamjit Anmol along with director Smeep Kang, distributor Munish Sahni and the producers as well. 

“We need to laugh and laugh loud because this is the only way to handle stress. Vadhaiyan Ji Vadhaiyan offers a fresh comic take,” says Binnu Dhillon. 

Vadhaiyan Ji Vadhaiyan is the first Punjabi film to release in Portugal and Spain and has the biggest screen release in Australia. 

jasmine@tribunemail.com