"I felt like I was doing a Bengali film" says Konkana... Contd.

What was it like working with Abhishek Bachchan?
I didn"t have too many scenes with Abhishek. We just had a song together and one scene together. He"s good fun always cracking jokes on set making fun of everyone so the atmosphere is light and convivial. It"s been good fun and he has a nice energy.

What was it like working with Anupam Kher?
Anupamji is another person whom I took to immediately because the first day he came on set in Benaras, I think I was quite bored that day I probably didn"t have much to do and he came and he just started playing games and I love playing games and so does he. We used to play these word making games and all kinds of word games you can play at a set and the first few times I even beat him so that was a lot of fun. I enjoyed working with him.

What was it like working with Kunal Kapoor?
Kunal and I did two films back to back. We did Laaga Chunari Mein Daag and Aaja Nachle, so there was a process of getting to know each other. He is such a lovely person. There is not one malicious bone in his body, he is what he is, he is very ernest, very professional. There are these things that I could learn and you can just tease him, make fun of him and he takes it so well and he makes fun of me back. We share a very nice rapport, very comfortable and we remain friends even otherwise.

How did this film happen and what made you decide on doing it?
I had got a call from Aditya Chopra and he had asked me about Aaja Nachle. I was excited and I grabbed that opportunity to be a part of that film. Then I got a second call asking if I was interested in hearing the subject of Pradeep Sarkar"s film. I had already heard of Dada making a new film so I was very excited to hear that I was being considered because I loved Parineeta. I wanted to work with Dada and I heard the script with Dada, and Rekha Nigam who wrote the film and I loved my part and I think any actor would have loved to do this role.

Can you tell us something about your styling in the film? Which is your favourite outfit from the film?
My clothes are designed by Manish Malhotra and Sabyasachi who are the best of the best. The first half of the film is set in Benaras for which Sabyasachi did my clothes and for second half of the film where I am in Bombay, the look has been designed by Manish Malhotra. I personally like wearing Patyala and short kurtis so I was very comfortable in Sabyasachi clothes. At the same time I have to say Manish"s clothes when I wore them I used to be very hesitant and unsure because it had to be more on the glamorous side. I would keep telling him that make the dress a little longer or give me sleeves, make the neckline higher and he would be like, trust me its going to look nice on the screen and it has. I have got many compliments, even his style of Churidar-Kameezes are so different from the earlier look and its been wonderful. I don"t know if I will wear them off screen but I think it does look great. There is one outfit which I love which is a skimpy blue dress which I am wearing in the proposal scene in Laaga Chunari Mein Daag at the time of wearing that I was very apprehensive but I think it looks great on screen so I am glad he pushed the envelope.

Any memorable incident you remember during the shoot of the film?
One was I remember in Benaras when we were shooting the song 'Hum To Aise Hai Bhaiya" and there is a scene where my character is supposed to be having a glass of bhang and I had to actually swallow a lot of milk during that time. I was disgusted because I had to actually spit it out because we had to do quite a few takes. The other thing I remember is being in Switzerland and taking a helicopter shot where they had to put me on top of a cliff. I was wearing a skimpy white dress and it was freezing cold and I had to stand on this hilltop and wave frantically to this helicopter which is circling me. I was freezing and I thought my arms would fall off and it didn"t work the first time so we had to go there the second day and do it all over again and I was alone except for one assistant who had come with me both times and we both just died.

What was the experience like shooting in a complete Bengali set up?
I felt like I was doing a Bengali film and I think many unit members also felt that they are doing a Bengali film because Dada would constantly talk in Bengali. I would feel very bad for the non-Bengalis because Dada would constantly give directions on the mike in fluent Bengali and his Hindi was also spoken in a very typical Bengali way. The food, the crew everything was very Bengali so I was quite comfortable.

What is it like to have a mother who is a director? Do you consult her about your roles?
I have to say one thing because she is a director she never takes my side. Any film that I am working on if I begin to complain because sometimes acting is very tedious she tells me that"s the way film making is and she never takes my side ever, so that"s the worst part of having a mom who is also a director. But at the same time its also very convenient because she knows it all because of her experience she can offer a lot I terms of advice and feedback and I often ask her about the offers I am getting and the script but nowadays its not much because we are not in the same city but we do talk and I value her advice very much.