‘I don’t judge my characters’

Nonika Singh

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On screen, Kirti Kulhari comes across like a breath of fresh air; naturally beautiful with a natural flair for acting. Off screen, her disarming candour is equally refreshing. Nepotism, MeToo and even the quality of Indian content vis-a-vis its western counterpart, she has a candid take on all; invariably upfront and honest. Without hesitation, the actress agrees that Indian content on the OTT platforms has a long way to go and is not even half as well-researched as international web series.

Not a wee bit peeved by those who compared (unfairly too) her hugely successful Four More Shots Please! with Veere Di Wedding and Sex And The City, she feels, “People need reference points and comparisons are inevitable.”

Bigger & better

As, the second season of Four More Shots Please! is about to premier on Amazon Prime, she insists, “It will be bigger and better.” As a rule, second seasons might reek of déjà vu, but character-driven shows like Four More… she thinks come out stronger. She adds, “For viewers are already familiar with the world of these four girls and you don’t need to build the characters from a scratch.” Playing a single mom and a lawyer in the series she, however, does not feel the need to relate to her characters.

She asserts, “My journey has made me realise that you need to step out of your comfort zone. I am open to parts that exist in me as well as ones that are completely alien to my sensibilities and which help me explore and make me more open. I no longer judge my characters.”

Indeed, she agrees that the subject of women’s sexuality, till recently a taboo in Indian dramas, is now being explored far too often. She opines, “See we always move from one extreme to another before we find the balance. It’s exactly how nature operates.”

Being real

Personally, she has struck a fine balance between the OTT platforms and cinema. In the days of coronavirus lockdown she is tickled pink when her movies like Blackmail, which didn’t do well on the box-office are eliciting a positive feedback. Even though she has acted in super-hits like Uri and Mission Mangal, she would not overrate her star quotient. An integral part of many an ensemble cast film, she knows too well that she can carry a film on her shoulders. At the same time she is conscious of the fact that, may be as yet, she does not have the star pull to draw in requisite numbers. That is where OTT platforms which, ‘give a fair chance to all’, come in as a blessing if not panacea.

Before the year fades out, she would be headlining a couple of big projects which will make her delve into the deeper recesses of her acting capability, which even she didn’t know existed! As an actor, however, she does not let her screen parts get the better of her real being. From days when she was fascinated by method actors who crossed the line between real and reel, today she follows the ‘switch on switch off’ mode with consummate ease.

“I don’t feel the need to be in my character 24 by 7,” she says. However, that does not take away her ability to meld with different parts. Reticent or bold, sassy or virtuous, she finds her metier. To be also seen in The Girl On The Train, she may not be in the express lane right now but the actor who loves acting, creates her characters with the same sentiment. Emotions, anyway, she feels are the gateway to a character and what connect actors, characters and the viewers.

nonikasingh@tribunemail.com