How did you prepare to play a village girl?
Poonam, my character, is from a small town. She has no parents and lives with her uncle and aunt. When you grow up in someone else's house, there is a distinctive change in your behaviour -- you become much more sensitive and embody responsibility at a younger age, and are more mature than most girls your age. That's how Poonam is.
The marriage proposal comes from a rich business family, which has a very contrasting background from hers. The girl is a simple, pure person who does not get bedazzled by the sudden connection of wealth. Soorajji wanted me to maintain subtlety in my performance. I have never hassled any director with so many questions, but he was very patient, like a teacher. I had to work on the language nuances too.
Did you have to prepare specifically for this film?
Before meeting Soorajji for this film I had gone to Delhi for a day. But due to floods in Mumbai we had to stay back, and decided to tour Mathura and Vrindavan. I visited the Radha-Vallabh temple, the Bake Bihari temple and fell in love with the place. Their culture and spirituality, and the respect they have for others is so touching. They don't say 'hi', 'hello,' they say 'Radhe Radhe.'
I observed the girls there, and visited the temples so that when Soorajji narrated the script I knew where Poonam was coming from; knew her background and culture. It was such a beautiful coincidence. In this film my first dialogue is 'Radhe Radhe.'
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