On The Same Wavelength

Vidya Balan (VB): My brother-in-law, Kedar, told me that there was this ad filmmaker he had worked with who had an idea that he wanted to share with me. Kedar said the director wanted to meet me. I trust Kedar's creative instincts and I was intrigued to know about this person and hence agreed to meet him. We sat for a narration and later thought he needed to make some changes in the script.

Suresh Triveni (ST): I am from the advertising field and I used to work for a shampoo brand. At the time, Vidya was in the top league in advertising and in South films. Since then, I have always followed her work. In 2005, after Parineeta, I was shooting a documentary and I got to interview her. But I always had this crazy desire to work with her.

Things changed when I met Kedar, and everything fell into place. I didn't want to let go of this opportunity. I wanted to write a script and convince her to come on board. I got the chance to tell her the story in one line, that it was the story of a homemaker, and it kind of clicked with her. I took a sabbatical in January 2016 and started writing the script. After 30 days, I went back to Vidya, and she said yes! I cannot describe what it felt like to work with her.

VB: The idea, you know, a story of a homemaker who lands herself a job as an RJ. I thought that could be funny. Though it was funny, it also touched me. It was a film full of heart. I have not done anything that is light-hearted in a while. And the way he narrated it… he is a fantastic narrator! Sometimes, I used to wonder whether I would be able to do the scene the way he was doing it. It came alive when he narrated the story to me. Then, of course, the way he fleshed out the script. I thought if he is as good a director as he is a narrator, then I am set!

ST: I believe when you get an opportunity, there is no room for excuses. We got her dates and we fixed a schedule of 42 days. It was quite tough. For technicians, working 12 hours at a stretch is par for the course but not for actors, who have to keep switching emotions and performing in a single day in the Mumbai heat. It made me feel guilty. So the toughest part for the actors was the change in emotions.

VB: He brought his advertising discipline to this film. Everyone in every department knew the script like the back of their hands and was fully prepared. So there was only scope for spontaneity on the set. That was the only variable we were going to let in. The cast had done many readings and so there was nothing awkward between the team. The relationships were required to look real, Manav and I had to look like we had spent 12 years together. We couldn't afford formal body language, even on the first day of the shoot. We did readings with every single actor, so everyone knew what they were doing. I think that discipline helped us complete the film in no time.

ST: As a director, you always have veto power, you can say, but bigger are the people who listen to it. And I was very fortunate with it. Ultimately, it is the energy of the entire team coming together, and I think that is the biggest learning for me from this film. And, when Vidya is around, you always have to be on your toes.

VB: It's just happened that way. Dada (Pradeep Sarkar) was the oldest debutant. He made his feature film debut at 50! It is not a choice or a studied decision. I just like to work with people who are hungry. It is very important for any director to be disciplined. Since I give a lot to a film, I feel the director too should be equally passionate, involved and invested as I am. Also, first-time directors tend to write the best scripts. They give so much of themselves to the process.

VB: No. They do their thing, I do my thing.

ST: We noticed every nuance… when she was even a little tired, or the smile was missing for even 5 minutes, we would feel the change on the sets. Her responsibility was to keep the set alive. It was like watching an institution. Let me give you an example. There was a junior artist who had a small role, and Vidya went up to him and asked him whether he was an actor. He replied, 'No, I'm a junior artist' to which she said, 'That means you are an actor.' You should have seen how that uplifted him. As soon as the shot was taken, he turned around and asked me, "Shot kaisa tha!" She was able to motivate him to do a good job.

VB: Completely different. I feel I was ready for it. I was waiting for it to happen. I always say that my choices probably reflect my state of mind. All the angst came out in the last few films, and I was ready to smile and laugh. Suresh said, 'I haven't seen you smile or laugh on screen, for the longest time.' Even Ghanchakkar was a dark comedy and there was no scope for that. But this was a really happy character, someone who has zest for life. I think I wanted to feel that and I enjoyed every minute of it. I am someone who looks for a reason to feel happy, and with a character like this, I wanted to fly. There is a song in this film, 'Manva pank laga ke', I was literally like that. The whole experience was very joyous.

VB: Thank you, that is a lovely compliment. I don't know, I think my directors take me to that place. It is just what the script inspires in me and what I understand of the person I will be playing. Maybe I just don't like being myself all that much, so I am just running away into the characters I play!

ST: She is being very modest. She has this rare ability to humanise her character. Your script is like a body, and when someone like her performs, it gives the body a soul. There would be expressions that I would be missing when I see the take, and then when I see it on the edit, it is an entirely different thing and I am confused about which one to pick. At times, there would be just one shot, which might be just one look, and that would discount the next two scenes. It is unbelievable. I just told someone that hers is the performance of an actor who is possessed.

VB: Our director.

ST: I was with Tanishk Bagchi recording the song Manwa pankh laga ke. I was in the recording when this came to me. I had another idea to shoot that song but, suddenly, the 'Manwa pankh laga ke' lyrics hit and I loved the thought of a housewife in a cape. I remember, when I wrote about this idea on our Whatsapp group, there was no argument about the change. Then when we were shooting – I will never forget this – Vidya was on a stool, on a trolley, while getting all decked up. The stool was actually visible in the shot because we wanted it to be seen. We didn't want it to be a VFX shot. It had to show the simplicity of life. And for me, that one image paid homage to every homemaker because they aren't less than any superhero. My mother, my wife, my bhabhi, Vidya here, everyone is a superhero. That is how the idea came to me. It is a tribute to all homemakers.

VB: There were two interesting things you added during the shoot – one was this superwoman moment and the other was the last shot of the trailer, which was my laugh. The one where the caller is laughing, I am laughing, and so on.

ST: You know, there were three lines in the script actually. But you could not narrate it. We wrote it like laugh, laugh, laugh. It doesn't sound funny. But that shot has become the highlight.