'When projects are received well, it is like rain upon parched skin!'
Sobhita Dhulipala has constructed a curious career of unexpected triumphs.
As she returns in Amazon Prime Video's Made in Heaven 2, Subhash K Jha catches up with the sultry actress.
Your career has been dotted with unconventional triumphs. How would you define your career and where would you place Made In Heaven?
Unconventional triumphs is a lovely way to put it, thank you, especially because I got to play women that were conventional in the truest sense of the word. Real women with depth, dimension and greyness.
I aspire to have a long career dotted with meaningful and exciting roles that inspire, provoke and confront whilst making sure to entertain.
There was a huge hiatus hyphening the first season and the second. Was it easy picking from where you left off?
It is the excellence in the writing that made it easy to feel for my character Tara's plight and aspirations.
The credit goes to the writers and makers.
What an actor really brings to the table is meaning to the silences.
I gave Tara truth and grounding. It is the audiences that lend her wings.
Going back to Season 1, why do you think it made such a huge impact on a certain section of the audience?
There is a relatability to her moral conflicts, I believe.
It is reassuring to have role models that actually represent the female experience in its entire spectrum.
The characters of Made In Heaven allow for that.
It is freeing to find that our flaws make us not bad, but human.
Do you think the second season would have the same impact?
I hope more, to be honest. I was stunned by the screenplay, by its depth and audacity.
The kind of bonding you have with your costars Jim (Sarbh) and Arjun (Mathur)...
We are all hungry for meaningful work opportunities and that frankly, has been the force that forged us all together into giving this our 100 percent.
Were you in touch with any of them during the gap between the two seasons?
Not exactly. Socially perhaps, yes.
I found a sweet friendship with Shivani that I quite cherish.
As an outsider with nothing to recommend you except your talent, how tough has it been to find your place?
It has been tough, but definitely character-building.
I feel a guttural love for and am obsessive about storytelling and the craft of performance.
It means the world to me.
Every chance I get, I make sure to pour my all into it. So when projects are received well and give back, it really is like rain upon parched skin!
What are your forthcoming projects?
I shot for my first Hollywood film a little while ago: Monkey Man. Dev Patel has directed and acted in it.
Produced by terrific makers like Bron Studios and Thunder Road Films, who have made films like Joker, Bombshell, the John Wick series and Sicario, it was so much fun.
It is inching towards release, so fingers crossed.
There is another film I recently shot for. It will be out in the latter part of the year. Looking forward to announcing it soon.
