Actor Shweta Tripathi Sharma says she wanted to be a conventional big-screen heroine who would dress up in a yellow salwar-suit and run across a farm, until she became a part of acclaimed films such as "Masaan", "Haraamkhor", and popular web series "Mirzapur".
Shweta said she found "joy" in doing projects that gave her an opportunity to investigate humanity through different characters and stories.
Before she tasted nationwide fame as Gajagamini 'Golu' Gupta, her "Mirzapur" character, the 38-year-old had also made a name for herself with acting credits in "Haraamkhor", "The Trip" and "Suite Life of Karan and Kabir".
"It is important to remember why you wanted to act... I wanted to become a heroine wearing a yellow suit and dupatta in a farm because I didn’t know that this kind of world ('Mirzapur') exists, I was interested in acting. Thankfully, when ‘Masaan’ or ‘Haraamkhor’ happened to me, I realised that there’s a joy in doing these kinds of films.
"When I did those films, I realised this is what I want to do, I want to do cinema that tells stories where the perspective and heart (of a film) is emotions... Investigating humanity through characters and stories, and getting to know and understanding their pain, loss and happiness, but we don’t talk about all these emotions (often)," Shweta told PTI in an interview here.
The drama and getting into the skin of her character is a major draw for her. "You’ll have to break stereotypes and it is not easy because people love to put actors in boxes as we don’t want to imagine (different things). What’s amazing is the casting of Rasika (Dugal) for the role of Beena or Divyenndu as Munna, so this casting is a testament that as actors we should keep trying (to do different things).
"As actors, you have to keep at it no matter what, there are days when you are frustrated and crying, and you feel, ‘When will I get that work that I want to do’. But I realised that this journey is long and projects will be coming in, what we have to do is keep trying (to do different things)" she added.
"Mirzapur", directed by Gurmmeet Singh, revolves around gang wars and illegal weapon cartels in the backyard of Uttar Pradesh and Bihar. Produced by Farhan Akhtar and Ritesh Sidhwani’s Excel Entertainment, the third season of the series will stream on Prime Video from Friday.
Over the two seasons of the gangster drama, Shweta's Golu has undergone a major arc shift from an intelligent college student, who advocates non-violence, to a woman seeking to avenge the murder of her loved ones. “I haven’t seen a character like this before and this has nothing to do with gender. But someone’s graph is such because of the situation and events that have happened in her life. Her dreams are snatched away, she wanted to get into a different direction but now it is survival of the fittest.
"So, that purpose or dream of life... No matter how much you plan, life can throw surprises and bombs at you and (it's about) how you respond to that. For me, as an actor, this journey has been satisfying,” she added.
With a day to go for season three premiere, the actor said the new chapter has some of her favourite scenes. “In season three, there are few of my favourite scenes in my acting journey and I had them on sets of ’Mirzapur’... We give our heart and soul for it...
“When we shot the climax of season two, I messaged him (director), and thanked him, because the power I felt as Golu, is also the same power that I felt as an actor, Shweta, and that felt like a pat on everybody’s back,” she added. Shweta said she feels “overwhelmed” by the fandom around “Mirzapur” and Golu.
Recounting one of the encounters with fans, the actor said she hid behind her co-star Ali Fazal (who plays Guddu Pandit) when scores of admirers came up to her as they were filming for the second season in Varanasi.
“There’s a craze everywhere... We were shooting in a small lane and Ali was standing in front of me... It can get overwhelming when you see a crowd coming towards you and saying, ‘Guddu, Golu, Didi, Bhaiya’. "That love is beautiful. As I saw the crowd, as Golu might do it, I literally went (and hid) behind Ali. I’m glad that Guddu is the way he is because I felt protected.”
Shweta’s co-star Anjumm Shharma said he has been a fan of every “Mirzapur” character even before he became part of the show in season two, which premiered in October 2020.
“When people used to come and talk about the show or characters, those were the things that were satisfying as an actor. That became a big validation for me because certain times the minute choices that you make as an actor get noticed.
"I was walking on a hill road in Kasauli (a town in Himachal Pradesh), when two men came to me and said, ‘What great work you did in the show’, and they went back in the car, and moved on. So, they stopped only to say this thing, when these things were happening, I was like, ‘People are right when they say this show is really big’,” Anjumm said.
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Pankaj Tripathi, Rasika Dugal, Vijay Varma, Harshita Shekhar Gaur, Amit Sial, Priyanshu Painyuli, Sheeba Chaddha, Manu Rishi Chadha and Rajesh Tailang also round out the cast of “Mirzapur”.
