Shweta Tiwari is all set to essay as many as 13 different roles in a one-woman show, AAINE KE SAU TUKDE. The Big Boss 4 winner reveals as to why she chose such a challenging play at this juncture in her career. The play premieres in Mumbai on March 13, 2011.
Deepa Ranade
How did you land AAINE KE SAU TUKDE and what was your first reaction when you were offered 13 roles in one play?
Writer-director Saif Hyder Hasan first gave me the script to read. When I went through it, I found it to be a very well written play with several characters - two sisters, father, mother, chacha, chachi etc. I wondered which of these characters he was offering me. When he told me that there would be only one actor and I would be playing all the roles - I was totally shocked! I flatly refused to do the play as I thought I am not that talented and I cannot carry it off. But he insisted that I should give it a try. Even as we began rehearsals, I would cry that I wasn't able to play so many characters but he would tell me to go home and relax and that we could discuss the whole thing the next day. Then he would come home and convince me.
Have you worked with him earlier that he has placed so much faith in you with this play?
I have acted in a couple of plays prior to this - SHAADI KI HOME DELIVERY and SHARARAT. But those weren't with him. It is just providence that he should trust my talent so implicitly. He inspired a great deal of confidence in me.
Perhaps your Big Boss 4 win helped you land the play?
Hasan had offered me the play before I went for Big Boss and I had already approved of it. But since the script was in English and it had to be translated into Hindi, we hadn't start rehearsing. When I came off Big Boss - everything was ready for a take off.
What is the range of the 13 roles you are playing in terms of age and characterization?
I play characters from the age of 2 to 70. Also I play both the genders - male and female. I play Minal and Maanya, the identical twins from 2 to 40, and then there are Maanya's husband, son, dad, mom, aunt, uncle, lawyer and the judge.
How did you overcome the risk of overlapping identities in a solo act? How did these varied characters evolve?
We started off with readings of the play and then tried out variations for each character. For instance Hasan would give the character sketch of the father as an educated man who is ambitious about his daughters' studies and that the mother is a bit of a drama queen. I would give him my interpretations for each character and he would approve the best of the lot. All those who have seen the rehearsals feel that each character has a distinct identity.
How rigorously did you rehearse for this one-woman show?
We have been rehearsing six hours daily for over a month now. It involves reading, a run through the entire script, magic tricks, dancing and emoting. It is a simple story of a lady who starts narrating her story by enacting all the characters in it. She's a theatre actor who performs magic tricks and she dances too. She fantasizes that her ghunghroos become sad and happy with her; she feels the mirror is her friend. It is really a poetic character. Mind you, there is no change of get-up at all. There is a scene where 4-5 characters are talking simultaneously and only one actor is performing all the acts. I tell you - after one full rehearsal I get so exhausted that my body starts hurting. It may be a physically draining experience but it is also creatively, a most satisfying one.
How close is Minal's character to your real self?
None of the characters I play bear any resemblance to anyone in my real life and that is why I found this project so challenging. I had to work hard on discovering each character and to play them out of my imagination.
Which is your favourite scene in the play?
Minal's interaction with her six-year-old son Jubaal as she plays with him. It is such a cute sequence, and full of maternal emotion. I just love it!
What is director Saif Hyder Hasan's forte?
Hasan is a true director. I have been around for over a decade in the entertainment industry and I felt that I pretty much know everything about performing but he proved me wrong. He taught me afresh to emote just right. To give example- Minal breaks down completely in the play but Hasan hasn't made her cry even once! The subtlety of emotions is his forte.
After the Big Boss win, what can the audience expect from their darling?
Sweet of you to call me the darling of the audience! AAINE KE SAU TUDKE offers them complete entertainment and a unique theatre experience.
Are you having a tummy full of butterflies?
(Laughs) I am excited as well as nervous just before the opening of the play.
How's life after Big Boss?
Nothing much has changed except that earlier people would recognize me as Prerna from Kasauti Zindagi Ki (tele serial) and now they know me as Shweta beta! People relate to me as a person now.
What are your future plans about TV and movie projects?
I am not doing any TV or movies right now. I am on the lookout for something new and challenging now. Over the last decade I have played pretty much all the possible roles- ranging from lover, mother, mother-in-law to a ghost as well! I have anchored shows, danced and participated in all types of reality shows. I have to grow beyond. Come April, I am launching my acting academy. I was inspired by the fact that many youngsters approached me to train them for auditions. Never mind all the acting classes they attended. They asked for my help and after my training, all of them got selected in their auditions. That's because of my vast and varied experience with the practical aspects of screen acting. So all those who attend my three-month course will emerge as pure and complete actors. It will be a practical school of acting.
Describe your life at this juncture.
My life has always been a complete roller-coaster. At the moment I am at the highest point but soon I will come down and then go up again.
Does your daughter Palak want to be an actress like her mom?
Oh not at all! Right now, she is not interested in acting. She watches historicals and Discovery channel - at times she wants to be a pilot, at times, Jhansi Ki Rani. She's discovering her own path.
Last but not the least, your message for the Women's Day please!
I am inspired by all those women who fight the adversities of life without any social or financial support. I salute their undying spirit
*Deepa Ranade is a film and theatre reviewer. She has been an entertainment journalist for over fifteen years.
How did you land AAINE KE SAU TUKDE and what was your first reaction when you were offered 13 roles in one play?
