Postprandial craving

If actress Nimrat Kaur’s life were a movie, it would be neatly split into two parts — before and after the release of The Lunchbox . Before, she was a student travelling daily in a University Special bus from Noida to attend BCom Honours classes at Delhi’s Shri Ram College of Commerce who shifted to Mumbai to make it as an actor. That meant leaving the comfort of her home to squeeze into overstuffed local trains day in and day out to get to auditions. Sometimes, it paid off. You might place her from a Kumar Sanu music video in 2002, and more recently, a Cadbury Silk ad. “It used to be an ordeal. After travelling by train or auto, you enter a roomful of people. You have make-up on, you’re constantly dabbing your face, you’re wearing heels and your clothes are uncomfortable. By the end of it, you don’t even look like you deserve to be on camera. Today, my heart goes out to people when I see them returning from a bad audition,” she says, sipping a cold coffee at a suburban Mumbai café.

The second act of her fairytale life began this time last year at the Cannes Film Festival, of which Kaur has an almost photographic memory. After being stood up by her chauffer, she hurried down the buzzing Croisette, arriving just in time to hear herself being introduced as the ‘modern-day Charulata’ at The Lunchbox premiere. “When the film was over, there was a standing ovation for 15 minutes. It was so overwhelming. You know you have a good film, but to get that kind of resounding welcome is mind-blowing. On the road, I could hear people in different languages talk about it. I couldn’t understand everything, but I could catch the name of the film,” she says dreamily. This was her second outing at the festival. The year before she had travelled with a film called Peddlers, which was screened in the same International Critics’ Week category but didn’t make the kind of splash The Lunchbox made.

A year later Kaur, 32, is still basking in that glory. She’s travelled with the film to festivals in Switzerland, France, Croatia, and will soon visit Slovenia. “I’m still eating off that feast,” she says with a laugh. The inherently Indian tale of a lonely homemaker in Malad and a grumpy, soon-to-retire accountant bonding over a misdirected lunchbox has been relished by global audiences like it were their own. “Wherever I’ve been, people have asked such incredibly pertinent questions. Why is it that you speak in Hindi, but Irrfan (Khan) speaks in English? Why does he write like he does? Does the dabba system actually exist or is it made up?” she says.

On the personal front, her life appears unchanged outwardly. She’s completed 10 years in Mumbai and recently moved into a new apartment in the suburbs with her cats Karamchand and Kit Kat. Her warm and friendly demeanour appears untouched by stardom. And yet, things are different now. “I have a management firm now that looks into my work, so things are more sorted and organised. People can put a name to my face. I’ve become more public. That next level has happened,” says Kaur. Catching her by surprise, Amitabh Bachchan congratulated her on her performance in the greenroom at an awards show. “He held my hand and said it was an honour to meet me. I was surprised he knew my name. He also spoke about my Cadbury ad, saying he loved me more in that. That was my only truly star-struck moment ever,” she says, with a laugh.

She hasn’t had to battle failure, negative reviews or harsh critics, until now. The only thing that vaguely qualifies as bad press is a video she stumbled upon a few months ago, showing her bending repeatedly in a dress with a plunging neckline. “I don’t google myself. I did once or twice and found this. I found it very, very funny. I thought, what the hell is happening to me,” she says. Other than these minor irks, Kaur says there’s nothing to dislike about her jet-setting life. The frequent red-carpet appearances are hectic, but she’s fast becoming a pro at it. “You have to get your stylist, and make sure you don’t make a fool of yourself. Also, you can’t wear something that somebody else has already worn. By the end of the night, you are completely exhausted because fittings happen until the last minute,” she explains.

The present big question on many a mind is when Kaur will next display her talent on screen. She’s spent a good part of last year reading scripts and meeting with filmmakers but hasn’t confirmed anything yet. “I’m very happy with what’s coming to me, but I’m also very greedy. I keep thinking maybe something better is yet to come my way. I should lock something soon,” she says. While The Lunchbox occupied a very unique space in Indian cinema, Kaur is eager to experiment with different genres. As a film viewer she doesn’t discriminate between a masala entertainer and an indie film. When there’s a Salman Khan or an Akshay Kumar movie playing, she makes the trek to Juhu’s single-screen Chandan theatre to soak in the excitement from a balcony seat. “I need something that puts me in a different space and exposes me to a different audience. All these meetings with writers, filmmakers, producers help in understanding what’s in the market and how I’m viewed as an actor,” she says.

She waited 10 years before landing The Lunchbox and is prepared to take her time to plot her next move (reportedly, a Saurabh Shukla movie with Rajkummar Rao). “I was never here because I needed quick money, a big car or a big house... Whatever comes slow, stays longer,” she says.

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