Divya Dutta is one actress to always choose the bravest and most out-of-the-box films and is never afraid to try her hand at challenging roles. Speaking about how she doesn’t care about the length of the role, she speaks to Hindustan Times about how she never shied away from choosing small roles.
She says that earlier, she has seen actors turn down roles because they were too small. But she has never done that as she has always seen how impactful the role is for the film.
She says:
Earlier, we used to say chhota role nahi karenge. I never said that, but I have seen girls say it. Now they say ‘chhota hai, koi baat nahi, impactful hai na?
Talking about how she has gone to great lengths to achieve the look and feel of her characters, she speaks about casting today and says that as an actor, it is all about convincing the audience about your part. This was in relation to the whole discussion about casting Taapsee Pannu and Bhumi Pednekar in elderly roles in Saand Ki Aankh.
She says:
It’s not about who is playing it, it’s how you play it. The film you mentioned, if something was questionable, it was makeup and VFX. I once lost a role because I was told I am fair. They were looking for a village woman who is darker. They told me ‘you suit the role completely’. I asked ‘then why am I not doing it?’ They replied ‘you are too fair for the role’. I felt a little cheated at not being able to do something because of skin colour. But I am an actor. I was darkened for Delhi 6. I used to go to set at 4 in the morning, mera mazaak udta tha for the call time. I used to take so long to get ready. But here was a director (Rakeysh Omprakash Mehra) who interested me with a role.
Well, we are glad that it is