Shyamoupti Mudly opens up about working with Nandita-Shiboprosad in her first film Phool Pishi O Edward

I am feeling great and very blessed to have done my first film with such great directors as Shiboprosad Mukherjee and Nandita Roy. I was initially a bit nervous and am now very excited. All firsts in life are special and remain etched in our hearts forever. The same is true for Phool Pishi O Edward, my first film. Initially, I was a little tense thinking about working with such big names and whether I would be able to cope up. But all of them are so humble and grounded. I feel blessed to have such directors and co-actors in my first film. It created such a comfort zone for me that I never felt ill at ease.

My character is called Binita. I can’t say much as there is mystery and relationship turmoil in this film. Binita is getting married soon, and she is clear about what she wants out of life. I feel that if one has clarity about life goals, life itself gets easy.

I had to learn Kathak, and having been trained in Bharatanatyam and freestyle dance helped to a certain extent to learn the Kathak steps. Also, while preparing for a character, I believe in looking back to its childhood to bring out the shades in it and flesh it out. That helps in understanding why a character reacts the way it does in a situation. So, in my mind, I create an imagery, and I go back far into the childhood of any character I play to portray it perfectly.

I had a prior experience of working with Sohini in a television series. And Raima is so sweet and incapable of intimidating anyone with her presence. In fact, when Raima got to know I was going to get married, she got me such beautiful gifts from Dubai. It was so touching. The film’s plot was also such that it required a strong bonding among women co-actors, which was crucial to the performance. Also, since the captains of the film were so good, it pervades the entire team with a spirit of bonding. In fact, all the co-actors welcomed me with open arms.

She loves to pull pranks but never did that with me. Most of the times, her victim was our stylist Anupam Chatterjee, but all those were very innocent ones.

A dance sequence was shot on the rooftop at sunrise, where the surface of the floor was rough and my feet got scraped. But I felt it was nothing much since I was so engrossed in the shoot. I really couldn’t feel the pain much, as everyone was caring and took care of me like a baby.

I’m a bit choosy, and I look at the character and the script and see how crucial the role I have been offered is to the plot. Also, it’s important how much I can explore myself and who the makers are.

Oh, a lot. It helped me to get disciplined and learn the dialogues by heart. Also, I know the camera angles and I am mentally ready for any situation on the floor.

I have never planned anything in life and have rather gone with the flow. For many years, I have done serials. This is my first movie, and it happened with such a big production house as Windows. So, I feel hopeful, and I think I should try and explore the medium more. I want to develop myself and update myself as a performer. So, during my free time, I would try to groom myself, I will do workshops and study psychology more since observation is important in acting.

I have a huge crush on Alia Bhatt. The way she has transformed herself is very inspiring for me. Whenever I see her on screen, I am mesmerised.

Life is going really well. I can’t really put my fingers exactly into what has actually changed for me. Besides shifting to a new apartment, life continues in the same rhythm. It’s only that our responsibility has increased but apart from that, not much has changed in my life. In fact, I now have more freedom than before.

He is the same, and I will give equal marks. He is very homely and is a complete family man. He keeps things sorted and is mentally very sorted. He has so many good habits; it is difficult to point out any one. The only bad thing about him is his sense of timing. Even if he gets up at 5 in the morning, he finds it difficult to get ready by 8 am.

I start my morning with some relaxation music. I begin my day with cumin, carrom seeds, soaked fennel, water with a slice of lemon. I love journalling and thank God for every-thing I have. I believe in positive energy. I love to start my day with positivity.

I like being casual, and comfort is key. For work or fashion shoots, I can wear anything that would make me look good. But for personal outings, I select outfits randomly and wear something that I would be comfortable in.

Saris are always there. Whenever I have to go somewhere, and when I am confused what to wear, I pick up a handloom cotton sari and pair that with silver jewellery. Also, there are lots of casuals like shorts, baggy pants, and baggy t-shirts in my wardrobe. I love the baggy style.

Toilet sanitiser, a small diary, and pen, a lip balm, a hand cream, and AirPods.

Rice, dal, and potato fritters anytime. I love anything cooked by mom. I am a hardcore Bengali, and Bengali cuisine is my comfort food. My fitness mantra is “Don’t hurt your heart”. My lifestyle and fitness coach, Atanu Paul, guides me all day long and says not to stress myself much. Fitness is a long-term goal, and one should enjoy the time in the gym. So, I do weight training at the gym for four days a week, and the remaining days, I rest. My diet is just a basic homemade healthy clean food platter comprising veggies, rice, dal and any kind of protein. I have a sweet tooth, so I eat a lot of sweets. But it’s all about balancing.