Sandhya Mridul speaks on her movies

Sandhya Mridul not only possesses great looks but also has oodles of talent. The actress, who has films like Saathiya and Page3 under her belt, is coming up with interesting projects like Via Darjeeling, Salaam India and Honey moon Travels Pvt Ltd.

How did HTPL happen to you? Since it's a multi starer weren't you apprehensive about your role?
When the film was being written, the writer Anurag Kashyap suggested my name for the role of Madhu .I think they already had in mind to cast me for some role in the film. As the characters were written they felt that Madhu will be a good character to play as it had a lot of shades to it. And when anyone has a role with so many shades to it I guess I am being called.

I wasn't apprehensive at all. Even if it's a multi starrer I don't get intimidated by stars. Rani Mukherjee was the heroine of my first film and Konkana in Page 3 both didn't bother me. I am pretty confident about my graph and I know that I play my character with honesty and the best as I can play. I have never compared myself with anyone. Any new number of stars is not going to scare me, and I am never going to be insecure abut my work.

Tell us about the story
The film is about six couples on a honeymoon and the things that happen to each of the couples. There is initial nervousness and awkwardness as it's a honeymoon. Some are odd couples, and some are compatible ones. The film has a very lighthearted approach and not an emotional, dramatic one. It's like a slice of life from their journey during the honeymoon.

Tell us about your role in detail?
My character is called Madhu. She is a Bombay girl. She knows how to wear her attitude, but doesn't know how to wear her clothes. But whatever she does she does it with confidence, you may not like the way she is dressed but she is very comfortable with herself. She is a very likeable character for everyone except for KK Menon. And you will see why in the film. She is mysterious, naughty just like a regular girl. And then a crazy thing happens to her on the Honeymoon, to know more you will have to watch the film.

The song Sajnaji Vari Vari is topping the music charts. What do you have to say about it?
Firstly I love Vishal and Shekhar; I just love the kind of music they make. We had a ball. Farha Khan was choreographing the song. She is great fun with loads of energy. She gave everybody a broad framework to work in, she asked us to follow our characters. She sometimes helped us with our steps. But most of the times she told us this is the space and this is what I am looking for, go play, but I want to see a lot of energy. But with KK she choreographed a bit, and the rest he improvised, he is fabulous.

It was a very difficult to shoot on a yacht because the boat was rocking and we were nauseous at times. But we had great fun. On the day we wrapped up the shoot for the song, the entire crew danced to the song on the yacht. It rocked!!

Any fond memory while shooting HTPL
Shabana, Ranvir, Boman and I were obsessed with dumb charades. Then everybody got hooked on to it. The minute the shot would be over we would be playing dumb charades. Throughout the entire shoot for one month every time we got a break on the set we would start playing. The entire shoot was very demanding, but still we had great fun.

How was it working with Shabana Azmi, Boman Irani, K K Menon and others in the cast?
Working with Shabana was great. I used to respect that woman, then I used to fear her and now I adore her. I am really glad I got to know her. I have worked with KK before; he is someone whom I always thought highly of. Initially he was a bit reserved but then later he was great fun. I have never worked with Boman Irani, but after Page3 I got a message from Boman that you are fabulous. Boman is someone who has always encouraged me. Boman would give hugs to everyone on the sets. He was like a big teddy bear.

How was it working with Reema Katgi? This is her debut film as a director. How is she as a filmmaker?
She is very cool. She had just recovered from jaundice and it was very tough for her, but she had a great team, Zoya was very good. Reema just went about her job. Some days were very difficult but she is extremely focused.

Who is your co-star in the film?
Vikram Chatwal plays my co-star. When you meet him it is hard to believe that he comes from a million dollar background. He is extremely warm and down to earth guy. He is always willing to adjust and learn.

What are you looking forward to this year post HTPL?
I am doing this film called Saalam India with Sanjay Suri. The film is directed by a debut director Subash Kapoor. Also I am doing another film called Via Darj, (it is a short for Darjeeling) it's a suspense- drama. The film has an interesting cast like KK Memon, Sonali Kulkarni, Vinay Pathak and Rajat Kapoor and it is directed by a Bengali director Arindam Nandi.

You are also doing theatre. Tell us about that? How did theatre happen to you? How do you take out time for rehearsals from your busy shooting schedules?
Yes I opened my play on the 4th it's called Double Deal its going house full in Bombay, and will soon open in Delhi and Calcutta. The play is a psycho thriller and has two actors, me and Mahesh Manjrekar and it's an adaptation from an English play called Killing time.

I got this play through Mahesh Dattani who came to me and said that Sandhya I want to meet you and I have a very good script, I don't know how you will make time for me, but I would really like you to hear it. When you are doing hard work you do tend to make time. Initial rehearsals do take time but once you are rehearsed, it doesn't take time.

Is there any role in your mind that you would like to play in near future? Are you satisfied the way your career is going or are there any regrets?
No, I don't have any regrets. But I can't say I am satisfied for sure. There is a lot more that I want to do and a lot of roles that I want to play. I believe the only one thing is versatility, till I have gambled with various different parts I won't be satisfied. But I am glad the way its going, every time there is a different role I get called. Therefore I think I am finding my own space. I don't want to be in a hurry, I am not here to just be in a film, I love acting, I don't want to compromise.

What would be your dream Honeymoon destination?
I think it will be Maldives because I guess I just love the sea.