Rytasha Rathore, who played Masaba Gupta’s best friend Gia in the Netflix series Masaba Masaba, is pretty much like her on-screen character. She is fun, independent, easy-going and wears her heart on her sleeves. Rytasha, 29, who calls herself her best cheerleader, has already worked in a couple of TV shows, the prominent one being Bado Bahu (2016). During a hearty chat with the Singapore-born actor, Rytasha spoke about connecting with the celebrity couturier on body positivity, being a bawler in real life and her podcast Agla Station Adulthood. Excerpts:
Your Instagram post shows how excited and starstruck you were working with Masaba. Tell us more.
My starstruck excitement lasted probably for few minutes because as we got into work it was like two young women who happen to be in a series together. It was easy and organic after that. She is quite chilled out and very lovely to work with. And since we were supposed to play best friends in the series, it brought that level of comfort even in real life as well.
Are you two friends now?
I think friendship is something that takes years to form. We chat on Instagram at times. I won’t say she is my friend but I know she will be there if I need her.
You both are vocal about body positivity. Did that help you connect better?
At an internal level we know that we are on the same page. It was an unspoken understanding. Yes, it did bring us on the same page.
The character Gia is different from what you have done so far. What was your reaction when you first read the script?
I didn’t really know a lot about the role as they were still in the process of developing the character of Gia. Also, I had no idea what the final script was because fortunately or unfortunately, supporting actors don’t get to read the script. However, when we went for the reading, I was happy the role came my way.
How much do you relate to Gia?
She is a version of me in real life. She is a bawler. Yes, that’s the best way to describe her! Even I am a bawler. I am a lot like her, except for the fact that I am not into casual hook-ups like Gia. I am too scared of sexually transmitted disease.
The show talked about dealing with your hot mess. How do you deal with yours?
I cry a lot and keep crying until I feel better. I am close to my parents so I share everything with them. I also go for therapy. I do these various things to manage my mess because I know being adults is equal to mess. We have to embrace it and emerge stronger.
Your podcast Agla Station Adulthood completed 50 episodes. Tell us about that.
It is my baby; my podcast and I am so proud of it. When we, my friend Aayushi and I, started it, we had no idea of the future of the show. It’s amazing we managed 50 weeks. There are 50 hours of me and my co-host talking about all things adult. We hope to hit a century.
What’s next?
You will see me on major streaming platforms, being delightful and lovable in every single role.