Bollywood actor Sanya Malhotra watched the acclaimed Malayalam film “The Great Indian Kitchen” when she took on the role of female lead its adaptation “Mrs”.
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Sanya described the Hindi remake as a “more palatable” plot for north Indian viewers.
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The Hindi film, also starring Nishant Dahiya and Kanwaljit Singh, is based on 2021’s “The Great Indian Kitchen” directed by Jeo Baby.
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Much like the original film, “Mrs” revolves around an aspiring dancer called Richa (Malhotra) who is married off in a patriarchal family where she is reduced to doing household chores but ultimately resists her oppression.
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The success of “The Great Indian Kitchen” shot Baby and its lead star Nimisha Sajayan to nationwide fame. Arati Kadav of “Cargo” fame has directed “Mrs”.
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While she didn’t exchange notes with Sajayan before starting work on “Mrs”, Malhotra said watching the original movie helped as the story resonated with her a lot.
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“I’d already seen the (original) film when it came to me. The idea was to make the film more palatable for the north Indian audiences. That was always in our mind. I didn’t get a chance to talk to her (Sajayan)… the thing is that this story is so relevant… So many women have related to (the trailer).
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“Some are feeling triggered, some are feeling emotional that it’s their story… That’s the reason we adapted the film and made it our own. Arati brought her lived-in experiences and made it very personal. I know people around me, including a close friend, who have faced similar challenges as Richa,” the actor said in an interview.
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Malhotra, also known for films such as “Dangal”, “Pataakha”, “Pagglait”, and “Kathal: A Jackfruit Mystery”, said she likes writing a journal for the characters she wants to understand “emotionally”. She did the same for Richa, her character in “Mrs”.
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“There are some characters which don’t require me to go in depth. But in this one, I had to do it because I’ve never experienced what she’s experiencing. So, I maintained a journal constantly writing her back story about her childhood…” she added.
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Kadav said when film’s producer Harman Baweja approached her for “Mrs”, she felt his heart was in the right place.
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“He said he wanted to make the film because he felt like he should change himself after watching the movie. I want more people to see it. If the compass is pointing in the right direction, you should go for it,” she said.
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What further piqued Kadav’s interest about the film was that Malhotra was already interested about coming on board.
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“When I met her, I felt like some magic is going to happen… She brought in a lot of honesty and sincerity. When I saw her process as an actor, it kind of motivated me also to prep more, talk to more women.
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“This is my story, my mother’s story, story of every household. As I collaborated with Sanya, I really got to talk to women of today. I didn’t think that they would be facing something similar but I realised it could have been my problem as well,” she added.