Meet madam Vidya’s squad
Mirror (February 6) was the first to report about Vidya Balan taking on the role of the madam of a brothel in Begum Jaan, the Hindi adaptation of National Award-winning filmmaker Srijit Mukherji's Bengali film, Rajkahini.
Now, Mirror has learnt that Hawaizaada actresses Pallavi Sharda and Priyanka Sethia, ex-Bigg Boss winner Gauahar Khan, Dhanak actress Flora Saini, TV actress Ridhima Tiwari, Ravija Chauhan and Poonam Rajput have been cast as the prostitutes living in the brothel. “The characters are set in the Partition era and have faced a lot of adversities in life, so I wanted actors who could understand the emotions, pain and the never-say-die attitude. These girls fit the roles perfectly,” confirms Srijit, who’s making his Bollywood debut with the Mahesh and Mukesh Bhattproduced adaptation and adds that he was looking for a mix of theatre, television and film actors. The film delves into the lives of 11 women living in a brothel that finds itself divided by the newly-chalked LOC, with half of the house in India and the other half in Pakistan post-Partition.
And Srijit has already begun prepping up with his actors. “I have been doing workshops with them since a month and have recommended to them books on partition by authors like Urvashi Butalia, Suvir Kaul and Joya Chatterji. Besides, we have also been discussing the back-stories of their characters so they understand them better. Some of them are watching Rajkahini as well,” reveals the director.
“While some play bureaucrats or police officers, others will be seen as a pimp or gate-keeper,” he says, adding that the film rolls mid-June and will be shot in Jharkhand, Punjab and Delhi. “I have a team of warriors,” he guffaws.
Now, Mirror has learnt that Hawaizaada actresses Pallavi Sharda and Priyanka Sethia, ex-Bigg Boss winner Gauahar Khan, Dhanak actress Flora Saini, TV actress Ridhima Tiwari, Ravija Chauhan and Poonam Rajput have been cast as the prostitutes living in the brothel. “The characters are set in the Partition era and have faced a lot of adversities in life, so I wanted actors who could understand the emotions, pain and the never-say-die attitude. These girls fit the roles perfectly,” confirms Srijit, who’s making his Bollywood debut with the Mahesh and Mukesh Bhattproduced adaptation and adds that he was looking for a mix of theatre, television and film actors. The film delves into the lives of 11 women living in a brothel that finds itself divided by the newly-chalked LOC, with half of the house in India and the other half in Pakistan post-Partition.
And Srijit has already begun prepping up with his actors. “I have been doing workshops with them since a month and have recommended to them books on partition by authors like Urvashi Butalia, Suvir Kaul and Joya Chatterji. Besides, we have also been discussing the back-stories of their characters so they understand them better. Some of them are watching Rajkahini as well,” reveals the director.
Veteran actress-singer Ila Arun and Kaanchi debutante Mishti feature in the film, as well. “They don’t play prostitutes but Ila ji plays a character that ends up at the brothel seeking refuge and grows into a mother figure to the other inmates over time. Mishti arrives there for the same reason,” adds Srijit who prefers not to reveal much about his male cast, which includes Rajit Kapoor, Vivek Mushran, Rajesh Sharma, Pitobash, Ashish Vidyarthi and Sumit Nijhawan.
“While some play bureaucrats or police officers, others will be seen as a pimp or gate-keeper,” he says, adding that the film rolls mid-June and will be shot in Jharkhand, Punjab and Delhi. “I have a team of warriors,” he guffaws.
