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Neeta Lal

For Konkona Sen Sharma, script, director, and her own role, are important criteria to take on a film. Money, she says, is "not an issue."

We catch Konkona Sen Sharma as she is preparing for a TV shoot to promote her latest film Amu, which is being released today. Ever since she made a mark on the national cinematic grid with Mr. And Mrs. Iyer, and won a prestigious National Award, Konkona has been an actor to watch out for. She has evolved her own acting vocabulary and, through a judicious mix of roles, managed to steer clear of Bollywood stereotypes too. With three quick releases over January-February this year, and a couple more thereafter, it's certainly going to be a full year for renowned director Aparna Sen's daughter.

We begin with Amu, directed by Los Angeles-based filmmaker/activist Shonali Bose, where Konkona plays the protagonist Kaju. A young Indian American, while visiting her family in India she discovers her place of birth. The film takes a sinister turn as Kaju stumbles upon secrets and lies from her past. A horrifying genocide that took place 20 years ago holds the key to her mysterious origin. "What I liked most about Amu was the powerful script," says Konkona. "It has a mother-daughter relationship which is very endearing."

It certainly wasn't an easy role to portray though. The shoots were done at night in slums (mostly Delhi's Sanjay Colony and Trilok Nagar) and the cast had to stand knee-deep in rubbish, amidst acrid smells. Plus, there was this faint American accent Konkona had to pick up. The entire cast (including CPI (M) activist Brinda Karat who plays Konkona's onscreen mother) was put through a rigorous, two-week long workshop. The results, apparently, have been worth it.

Another project the young actor is palpably excited about is Page Three (releasing mid-January) where she plays a society journo. "I'd never played a journalist before," she admits. "I constantly want to explore new horizons, push the envelope... Plus, Madhur's (Bhandarkar) work, especially Chandni Bar, had really impressed me."

Did dad Mukul Sharma, Consulting Editor with The Times Of India, New Delhi, dole out any tips for the journalist's role? "Oh! No. Dad doesn't do all that," she says. She had to research the role on her own... visiting newspaper offices, interacting with society journalists to pick up professional nuances and reading up on issues. "Also, since I was working with a veteran ensemble cast — Boman Irani, Suhasini Mule, to name a few — it was imperative that I prepare myself thoroughly for the role," she says.

What are her criteria for accepting a film role? "Script, director, my role," she says sans a pause. And money? "No, that's not an issue. I think it's important to keep the core right, everything else just follows." Perhaps that's why when a relative newcomer (Siddhartha Srinivasan) offered her Amavas, a horror film where she gets to do her own stunts, she accepted. "Believe it or not but I actually fly through the air in the movie and punch wires and cables which is all canned without gimmickry! Even my co-stars — Tara Sharma and Mahesh Manjrekar — have done their own stunts. So we make a mighty team!"

Any plans to take up film direction like mom Aparna Sen one day? "Well, it's a tad early to say that," is Konkona's response. "But then considering it took me a long time to accept the fact that I was an actress (despite acting since the age of four), you never know. But one thing is for sure. My idea of films would definitely be non-formulaic... a powerful script but a simple, no-frills narrative structure. No over-the-top drama or histrionics for me and probably no music either. I wonder if anybody would finance such a film though!" she laughs.

Picture by R.V. Moorthy

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