Mumbai: Shilpa Shukla left the audience awestruck with her impeccable performances in Shah Rukh Khan starrer ‘Chak De India’ and ‘BA Pass’. She bagged the Filmfare Award for Best Actress (Critics) for playing the role of Sarika in Ajay Bahl’s critically acclaimed ‘BA Pass’. While movie buffs have been eagerly waiting to see her back on the silver screen, the talented actress is busy with her digital projects and theatre.
Shilpa, while exclusively talking to ABP News, opened up about her new teleplay ‘Big Fat City’ for Zee Theatre. Here are excerpts from the interview!
Q- How was your experience while working on your new play ‘The Big Fat city’?
A- It was a special experience for two reasons. First, I have been a fan of plays written Mahesh Dattani sir. In fact, back in college, his Final Solution & Tara were the two significant plays for my initiation into Proscenium with Asmita Theatre Group. These plays always received a mind-blowing response from the audience. And we did many shows of it. So, it was like a dream come true for me to meet Mahesh Dattani sir & work with him. He is such a fantastic director & teacher. Big fat city was an extremely enriching experience. Secondly, I really enjoyed doing a comedy. I still remember how much we used to laugh.
Q- How did you prepare for your character? Did you go with the flow or decided to indulge in some training before playing the character?
A- It was very spontaneous. We did a workshop for few weeks & since Mahesh Sir is the playwright & director, the clarity & vision was totally in place. All of us had great bonding & things just fell in place.
Q- What attracts you towards theatre?
A- The living in the moment bit. The joy of putting a play together. The collective catharsis of the performers & its audience. Theatre is Thrilling!
Q- We can’t help but talk about your films- Chak De India and BA Pass. Fans love you for your power-packed performance in the above-mentioned projects but they didn’t get to see you in several films. Was it a conscious decision or you weren’t offered juicy projects?
A- I did a comedy film with Prakash Jha productions directed by Ritesh Menon post that. Absolutely enjoyed myself. And then there wasn’t much content for me somehow. So, I used the opportunity to travel & go back to the basics with theatre.
Q- You're slowly and steadily emerging as the queen of OTT with shows like Mentalhood, Criminal Justice and Hostages. What's next on the platter?
A- Thank you, yes there would be more, am sure :)
Q- Are you happy with the kind of roles being written for female characters in films and OTT?
A- Absolutely. Sky is the limit.