Na Aana Is Desh Laado Article Archive [No Comments] - Page 12

Meghna Malik 38
Complex Character

Confidently striding across the small screen in Colors' Na Aana Is Des Laado, the tyrannical, ghagra-clad matriarch dominates every frame. Getting under the skin of Ammaji, the literature graduate and National School of Drama alumnus has created a complex persona that is making the audiences react with shock and awe

What prompted you to take on this negative role?
The producers had the courage to sign me on. It is true that Na Aana Is Des Laado's Ammaji is not like the regular saas of a daily soap. You cannot stamp her completely negative as she is too layered a person. She is brutal but that is because she has been a victim of brutality herself.

What was the biggest challenge in this role?
It is more challenging to play a negative persona. You need to use all your craft to prove your mettle because it is in a daily soap. The script meanders and, as an actor, you have to be convincing to carry off every twist and turn, no matter how illogical it may seem. I had to work hard on the dialect and create a special gait. I put on five kilograms for the role.

The serial has been criticised as being regressive.....
The serials are portraying what research has shown still exists. We are not regressive in our depiction and the way we portray social issues like female foeticide proves that. The themes are still contemporary. It is true that there is a lot of drama but that is for the sake of entertainment.

Are you like Ammaji in any way?
I don't think like her at all. But I think I have her energy, the power of her voice, the physicality and the confidence of my craft. I do my own stunts whether it is wielding a sword or riding a horse; I have come to be known as the stunt queen of television.

Has Ammaji attained the same stature that characters like Tulsi (Smriti Iraani) and Parvati (Sakshi Tanwar) did?
The character has its own place in television history. It has probably never happened that the antagonist has become the protagonist. People are in awe of her and are fascinated by her vicious nature. For me, as an actor, it has been a beautiful and rewarding journey.

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