Mallika Sherawat has signed herself a full-fledged Hollywood feature. Unveiled -- directed by Bill Bannerman and to be shot this fall -- casts her in the main lead.
"She's the star," nods Bannerman, longtime assistant to Clint Eastwood and producer to films like Grudge 2 and Walking Tall. Visiting India for the first time with steady collaborator and executive producer John Lind, the filmmaker is surprised at the attention Mallika commands. "She's just so sensational. There's this great buzz about her, and she's a very talented actress," he says.
At a Mumbai press event on Saturday, March 10, to announce Unveiled, Mallika looked striking in a scarlet dress, and was poised enough to have the press eating out of her hands. Rarely disposed to interviews, the actress spoke at length about Hollywood's increasing acceptance of multicultural cinema, and her preparations for the demanding role.
She was also charitable to her bit-role in The Myth, saying, "A Jackie Chan film will always be a Jackie Chan film. Just like even with Halle Berry, a Bond film is a Bond film."
Bannerman described Unveiled as a neo-noir thriller, and used the word 'provocative' much to the liking of the media.
Ms Sherawat, meanwhile, preferred to downplay the potential steaminess to talk about the character instead, describing it as a role any actress would love to play. Lind confirmed that there has been interest shown by prominent actresses for the part, the central protagonist being a Muslim woman who has to undergo quite a metamorphosis.
Bannerman -- citing Alfred Hitchcock, Billy Wilder and Brian De Palma as his noir influences -- spoke of disguise and double identity, as the story moved from the Middle East to the US. "The central character finds herself in an extraordinary situation, as she takes on another identity. And then things, already complicated, get really out of control," he says.
From all accounts, the role is apparently very demanding."But she floored us at the auditions," said Lind, conforming that the massive media attention generated by Mallika's Cannes photocalls led to her getting noticed. "She's not just a fantastic looking actress, but she knows her work, works very hard, and has an amazing knowledge of cinema. She's a complete film buff."
Disagreeing with the suggestion that the film might be a Hollywood 'popcorn' thriller, Lind said, "It's a very nuanced script, I'd even personally describe it as more of a Sophie's Choice."
Bannerman confirms this, giving the film an onion analogy to talk about its layers. And he smiles when talking about the role, admitting that while it's an emotionally complex character, Mallika will also play a femme fatale. So just how racy are we talking here? "Well, considering she has two husbands and a lover," Mallika laughs and trails off abruptly, stopping short because she's just let a shoe drop.
And, in keeping with her image, a most quotable shoe.
Text: Raja Sen | Photograph: Pradeep Bandekar