Shefali Shah shone brightly in 2022 with back-to-back path-breaking performances. Whether it was her role of Rukhsana in Vidya Balan starrer thriller Jalsa, DCP Vartika Chaturvedi in the second season of the Emmy Award-winning show Delhi Crime, Gauri Nath in medical thriller series Human or the social-comedy-drama film Doctor G with Ayushmann Khurrana, the seasoned actress not only impressed everyone with her impeccable acting skills but also proved that versatility remains to be her forte.
Along with the slew of the above-mentioned movies and shows, Shefali was also a part of Jasmeet K Reen’s dark comedy Darlings that was set in the backdrop of domestic violence. Apart from garnering positive reviews from the critics, the Alia Bhatt starrer had clocked in 10 million hours of watching time in its opening weekend. Now, the film is all set to premiere on television.
In an exclusive interview with News18 Showsha, Shefali Shah revealed that her character in Darlings was the closest to her real life persona. She said, “Shamshunissa is the closest to me as a person. I am very much like her. I know I have this image of an extremely serious person but I like to believe I have a sense of humour. I am witty. I am wicked in a funny way. And that’s what the film is about. So it was actually refreshing for me to do it because due to the image of the work I’ve done, I am always considered as a very serious actor. Although I am very serious about what I do, I have another side to me which is fun. And it was great fun doing Darlings. It was really a great trip for all of us together.”
The Dil Dhadakne Do actress also concurred that during the course of doing Darlings, she felt the urge to do more quirky roles. She stated, “I would love to do more comedies. I would love to do more light-hearted films. I love all the projects I have done. And I like the seriousness and the gravitas of it. Not taking away from the fact that Darlings even though is funny and light-hearted film, there is a lot of gravitas in that film. But I would love to explore roles. As an actor, you would not want to do similar kind of stuff. So I would definitely like to explore.”
When asked how she and the cast members would unwind after shooting a particularly intense scene in Darlings, Shefali answered, “Overall we had a lot of fun. The script itself was like that. When you are doing comedy, you are picking up from each other. It’s actually what happens on the sets and not what’s written in the script. There were times when we would just keep cracking up. And our scenes would get held back because we were finding all of it so funny. As far as the intense part of it goes, that’s the part and parcel of what we do. So when we were doing those intense parts, everyone was focussing on what was going on. And trying to give their best. And even physically the entire last sequence was not an easy one to shoot and definitely not easy for Vijay (Varma).”
While Shefali feels she is not capable of shooting two projects simultaneously, the talented actress sheds light on how she shifts between new roles and characters. “When you do a film which is very satisfying, it takes everything out of you. Whether it was Humans, the character of Gauri Nath consumed me. So there was nothing left to give or take. It was over and finished. And then you move on and take up another project and become another character and then you are totally obsessed with it,” expressed Shefali.
Adding to this, she also recalled the most difficult characters in recent times that she had internalised. Shefali quipped, “All my characters have required and taken a lot out of me. It would be unfair to put one against the other. For example, projects I did last year, each one was different and they required a different side of me. Human was a character I’ve never played before. She was a completely dark person. It’s a character that I don’t even have a reference point of. And then there was Jalsa which is again extremely intense. Then there is Darlings which is talking about a very pertinent and important topic and yet it’s treated in a different and unique way. Then you go to Delhi Crime. So it’s all of these. ”
Shefali doesn’t like to leave any stone unturned when she is on the sets. The actress revealed, “I chew my director’s brains off. I ask so many questions and they are like, ‘Oh My God!’ I want to know everything. I have a lot of conversations with my director. It’s always a give and take. Because together we are building the character and I go into smallest of details, whether you see it on screens or no, it matters to me, I need to know. For me, the scene is the last part of it. But how did you lead up to the scene. When the camera rolls, I honestly don’t know what I do. No matter the amount of rehearsals, when the camera rolls there’s something else that happens. And I cannot quantify it.”
As for the type of roles she would like to do now, the Ajeeb Daastaans actress disclosed, “There are so many roles and facets of various characters that I would like to do. I am a hardcore romantic. I haven’t done a lot of romantic films. I have actually just done ‘Once Again’. So that’s something I’d be interested in.”
Watch the World Television Premiere of Darlings on Zee Cinema on 29th January at 12pm.
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