Shweta Tiwari: A daily soap gets boring after six months

Shweta Tiwari loves her comic side in the new telly show, Mad In India.

Actress Shweta Tiwari plays a comic character named Katrina Mishra in Star Plus’s new show Mad in India.  

Shweta, who has to speak in a Bhojpuri accent on the show, admits she couldn't speak the language earlier and tried to copy actor Manoj Tiwari to get it right. 

“I picked up the accent or the way of saying things from him when we were locked in the Bigg Boss house," Shweta says. 

Comedy isn’t new to Shweta. She has won one season of the TV show Comedy Circus with her partner, stand-up comedian Kapil Sharma. 

“I won because of Kapil. I didn’t have a role to play," she says. “My comedy is good only because of Kapil. When I started, I didn’t know a thing about comedy. But I have learnt the knack over a period of time, which is what matters in comedy.” 

Now she enjoys it, but some things are off-limits. 

“I don’t like personal punches involving one’s family or personal life. But if things are said about me, I don’t really mind. It’s the Indian mentality to laugh at the expense of others.” 

She added, “I like doing comedy because it lets you be different people, be in different get-ups, behave mad, and sometimes weird, which you don t do in real life or a daily soap.”

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Shweta was approached for both Comedy Nights With Kapil and Mad in India, but she chose the latter.  

“The makers of both told me about my character in their respective shows and left it to me to take a call. I felt that Kapil's show and characters are already established and one doesn’t know how long they would continue my character. 

“Mad in India is a completely new show with a permanent character. I spoke to Kapil and his team and they were amicable about it,” explains Shweta.

“Soaps take up too much shooting time, and a daily soap gets boring after six months. It takes up all your time,” says Shweta, who has acted in several soaps.

Shweta has a teenaged daughter Palak and admits she can be a bit over-protective of her. 

“She needs more attention now. As a kid she would be happy with whatever I got for her. Now, she wants heels and fancy outfits.

“She wants to spend time with her friends at the coffee shop near our house. I have given the watchman strict instructions that if she steps out of the building, he must give me a call. 

“I remember the time I was shocked when I found out that her best friend is a boy. I feel it’s necessary to protect our daughters, all the more in today’s times.”

Shweta married actor Abhinav Kohli last year and says she has “never been so happy before.” 

“I never had time for myself and only worked. Now I look forward to going home. I love to be at home,” she says.

Her rocky marriage to Raja Chaudhary is behind her and she credits her family with being a big help in those troubled times. 

“I had my family, Ekta Kapoor and Shobha Kapoor, as support. Ekta gave me her lawyer and a production assistant who was all the time with me. Ekta knew everything about me. 

“When he (Raja) used to create a scene outside the set of my show, Ekta would call the production people and tell them to open the permanent shutter that used to separate another set (of Kahaani Ghar Ghar Ki) for me to run out. She has done this for me. I can never forget that. I owe them everything."