Can a seemingly harmless medical pill wreak havoc in a city? Are we aware of what our bodies are consuming? These and more form the crux of the medical crime thriller Durgapur Junction, directed by Arindam Bhattacharya. Starring Swastika Mukherjee as the bold investigative journalist Ushashie and Vikram Chatterjee as the suave and moody investigating officer, the movie is anticipated to keep you glued to your seats with its several twists and turns. We caught up with the leads at The Astor Kolkata for a quick chat.
Excerpts
How are Soumya and Ushashie different from other characters you have played?
Swastika: I’m playing an investigative journalist, which I have never played before. I also give a lot of thought to how I look in a film, that’s why I also don’t look like my previous characters. So, it’s me in a new package. Ushashie is opinionated, bold, no-nonsense, has a spine, righteous, and takes a stand. She has a lot of similarities with me.
Vikram: I play Soumya Sen, an officer who believes that if a task is given, he has to complete it, at any cost. If he thinks rules are an objection, he would overlook them and still close the case. He is hot-headed, moody, has temper issues, toxic. I have played a police almost a decade before in Khoj, but the persona of that office is completely different from Soumya. Also, at one point, we started designing our characters ourselves. Based on their personalities, at what point would they take what actions we kept on developing that.
What do you do when the heart and mind are at loggerheads?
Swastika: Follow the heart. I am always running after the heart and asking it to slow down so that the brain can catch up.
Vikram: Personally, it’s the heart that has taken over. Professionally, I let me brain takeover because there are people around me who don’t deserve to be dealt with the heart.
How did you prepare for your roles, and any anecdotes from shooting? Did you go back to any cop/ crime dramas?
Swastika: I don’t do this kind of homework at all. I observe a lot on a daily basis, read the script many times, and have conversations with the director and actors. Everybody has inputs that help. At times ,I am not thinking of something which somebody else might.
Vikram: We have a time crunch during the shoot where I may have thought something but missed it during the actual take. And she reminded me.
Swastika: What he did was very good, and when the take happened, though everybody was happy with it, I said No you have done something better in the rehearsal, so give another take and do the same.
Vikram: That’s the advantage of having a brilliant actor with you. Even my performance has been better. The other person delivers and also uplifts my performance.
Swastika: Also, I think where cinema is going, we should not feel envious if our co-actor is giving a better shot. He missed out on something during the actual take and I could have played it to my advantage. But if I had done that the scene and the film would suffer. You need to keep your insecurities outside the set.
How is Durgapur Junction standing out as a film where crime and thriller is an overused genres?
Swastika: We are there! I think it’s a who-why-how-when dunnit. And in the recent past a thriller–mystery concerning pharma companies in small town is unheard of and unseen.
Vikram: Visually, it’s a relief since people have seen so much of South Kolkata and its lanes or cafes in the recent past. It’s a thriller where deaths are happening due to a medicine which is seemingly harmless.
Swastika, you try to incorporate your mother’s fashion style while creating a character…
If my character is wearing the Indian look, then my mother’s fashion sensibilities come into my thoughts. I wear a lot of her saris. She was always very involved with my work. After she passed away, I thought I should continue keeping her in my work and wearing her things. She always did the simplest things- kajol and lipstick. No make-up until we introduced it to her. She was very fond of Lakme brown shade lipsticks, so we used to get them for her. She used to apply a lot of creams, always. I have seen her street shopping a lot.
Vikram, how has life changed after the success of Surjo and with the anticipation of Pariah 2?
Swastika: You can’t make a Pariah 2 without me! (laughs)
Vikram: After 2021, I have been doing films regularly; before that, it was more of television. I try to play different characters always. It’s going good.
3 summer wardrobe essentials
Swastika: White shirt, white salwar, bucket hat
Vikram: White dhuti-panjabi, white shirt, half-pants, and t-shirts
3 things you don’t leave home without
Swastika: lipstick, glasses
Vikram: phone, watch, locket
Last watched crime thriller:
Swastika: The Gardener, Jimmi
Vikram: Paatal Lok 2
1 word for Durgapur Junction
Swastika: kickass
Vikram: breathless
1 word for each other
Swastika: honest
Vikram: fearless
Durgapur Junction is running in theatres near you