“You Have To Wait For The Right Time As Well As The Right Opportunity To Strike It Big”- Archanna Guptaa

ARCHANNA GUPTAA, who plays the simple housewife of Freddie Daruwala in the latest web series Poison, tells JYOTHI VENKATESH what lured her to Mumbai towards acting.

The latest web series from the stable of Zee 5- Poison stars the new actress Archanna Guptaa with formidable actors like Arbaaz Khan, Freddie Daruwala, Riya Sen etc. Excerpts from the conversation:

You are a North Indian girl who has worked her way through to Mumbai via South Indian films. Comment!

Yes. I basically hail from Agra and after keeping myself busy by working in films in the South, in Kannada, Malayalam, Tamil and Telugu, like Kaanchi, Rasputin, Hangover etc , I managed to get my break in Bollywood when the offer to be a part of the festival film Ek Betuki Aadmi Ki Afraah Raatein directed by Sharad Raj came my way.

What is your role in Ek Betuki Aadmi Ki Afraah Raatein?

My role in the film has a lot of shades. I have been pitted opposite actor Rajkumar Verma in the film which has been shot in Lucknow and Muzaffar Nagar extensively. Adil Hussain plays the stellar role in the film. I’d say that Adil is a walking talking Acting Institute by himself, besides being a gem of a human being. Though I am not making my bow in films with a conventional singing and dancing romantic role, I am happy I could learn a lot working with Adilsaab in the film.

You are making your debut in web series with Poison. Did you ever have second thoughts because people often feel that acting in a web series is sort of a ‘come down’  for an actor who has worked in films?

On the contrary, I’d say that a web series is the best platform to showcase your talent to the large number of people in a short time because a lot of filmmakers I know are watching you day in and day out in web series to pick on talent for their films.

What is your role in Poison?

In Poison directed by Jatin Wagle, I play the role of a simple and caring housewife called Megha who is the wife of the character played by Freddie Daruwala. At the outset, let me clarify that my role does not have many shades but it is a good enough beginning for me in Bollywood after working in South Indian films. I play a very positive role in the web series where most of the actors are playing negative roles.

Aren’t you skeptical that makers of the web series may exploit you by making you go topless or do lip to lip kisses whether the plot demands them or not because there is no censorship at all in web series?

There are web series like Poison where I was not required to do any bold bedroom sequence forcefully even though I am shown as a married housewife or indulge in smooching scenes with my husband. I do not want to be part of those web series which only depend on excessive and explicit nudity, because all said and done, we are Indians and we require exercising some moderation.

Does it mean that you have already turned down offers to be part of web series where you were required to expose?

Right now, as a new comer, I do not think I am in a position to do web series which require me to show nudity. I refuse to accept a lot of such web series including Gandhi Baat 2 because I was not comfortable to do the scenes which I felt may affect my sensibility though I am not a prude actress. I am of the opinion that if at this stage I do not exercise caution and choose my roles properly; I’d be back to Square One.

Was it easy for you to convince your parents to let you take up acting as a career?

The first question that my father asked me when I expressed my desire to take up acting was whether I would be able to manage on my own. When I said yes, he asked me whether I will be happy with my decision, I said yes and thus my journey began in films.

You do not seem to be ambitious enough to approaching banners like say Yashraj or Dharma Productions or Rajkumar Hirani!

Frankly, it is not that easy to approach the big banners and you have to wait for the right time as well as the right opportunity to strike it big. Luckily for us newcomers, films with the accent on content are being made in large numbers today like Badhai Ho and Andha Dhun which give us a lot of hope. Actresses like Radhika Apte, Taapsee Pannu and Vidya Balan get women oriented films to get their teeth into good roles.

As an actress, are you game to play negative roles too?

Yes. I’d love to play a negative role, because it will be very challenging for a young girl with a sweet face to act in a negative role.

Who are your favorite actors and actresses in Bollywood today?

I am fond of everyone from Amitji to SRK, Salman and Aamir because I feel all have their own uniqueness, besides youngsters like Ranveer Singh and Ranbir Kapoor who also have something special in them. I love Alia Bhatt who is real and versatile and Madhuri Dixit. I have also learnt kathak from Lucknow gharana since it teaches you a lot of ada as a dancer.

Are you open to acting in films, TV serials, web series etc?

All that I can say right now honestly is that I am waiting for the right role to prove my mettle, whether it is a web series, a film or for that matter a short film. I am not sure whether I’d act in TV shows because they bind you for a long time and you may end losing offers from filmmakers and makers of web series.

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