| Imagine Vasundhara Das in the starched khaki uniform of a senior superintendent of police, swaying her baton on a surprise inspection.
You don't need to try too hard to evoke the picture in your mind, for come September and her film Bezubaan Pathaar releases, where she plays the role of an IPS officer.
The actress and singer, who as a child never aspired to be a gun-toting cop, grabbed the role quite by accident.
"After recording a song for the film, our director Pankaj Prakash gave me a narration and asked if I would play the lead character. I asked for a bound script. I read it, liked it and we went to shoot," says Das, who is presently on a month-long tour in the UK along with Taufiq Qureshi.
Method actor
Bezubaan Pathaar revolves around Kalpana Varma, senior superintendent of Agra rural district.
A firm believer in her department and a responsible officer, she stumbles upon a crime committed by a local inspector. The victim is a helpless quarry worker. Then begins Varma's fight for justice. The preparations saw her taking daily rounds of the police headquarters in Bangalore.
She would have lengthy discussions with SPs of Bangalore district and the director general of Karnataka police.
She even occupied a corner in their respective chambers for weeks to observe these real-life officers carry out their duties, discuss plans of action for certain cases, interact with senior and junior officers and grill suspects and witnesses alike.
Says Das, "I had undertaken this research to understand the roles of SPs in the IPS. I sat in with Prashant Thakur, former SP of Bangalore district and MK Shrivastav, additional director general of police on all working days."
Reality bites
Shot across Agra, Jagner, Taantpur, Mehrauli and Fatehpur Sikri, the filming process was an eye opener for the actress. She says, "I realised the truth that we, the residents of developed cities, are not the Indian majority and our reality is far from the reality of most Indians."
She further reveals, "During my stay in these remote places near Agra, I would have this young girl for company. She would ask if any of the women wanted massages or any other beauty related service. None of us from the unit put her to any task. Then one day, she asked if she could come back to Mumbai with me.
She said, 'Please give me a small corner in your house to sleep and let me go to school and I will be eternally grateful.' When I asked her why, she said her father wanted her to work rather than go to school as she had to feed her family."
Her other films that are set to release include Eik Dastak and chick flick Kudiyon Ka Hai Zamana.
"Eik Dastak is a film about a group of idealistic officers in the Indian Revenue Service. I play a senior officer who is the driving force behind the team. KKHZ is about four friends with lots of money, lots of time and a wicked sense of humour. I play Natasha, a young mom-to-be," she adds. |
Cricket
Writers Corner: Books, Stories & Poems
Yeh Rishta Kya Kehlata Hai
Kyunki Saas Bhi Kabhi Bahu Thi 2
7