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`Banaras' and beyond

Urmila Matondkar talks about how different it was to undertake a spiritual journey through `Banaras — A Mystic Love Story'

FOOD FOR MIND Urmila Matondkar photo: R.V.MOORTHY

For a few minutes, no one on the sets of Banaras — A Mystic Love Story realised that tears had rolled down their cheeks. Their reverie broke when director Pankuj Parashar yelled, "Cut". It was a scene in which Urmila Matondkar wears lots of jewellery, readies herself to look like a bride, and later takes them off, crying hysterically. She is depressed as her parents oppose her marriage to an orphan boy (played by Ashmit Patel).

Urmila, who was sent a bouquet of flowers for such a moving performance, told Pankuj, "I am a good actress. Every day I will perform better than the previous day. So, you will exhaust all your bouquets." As Pankuj puts it, she kept her promise throughout the film. Banaras — A Mystic Love Story, produced and penned by L.C. Chopra, a scholar, that hit the theatres this week, is what Urmila likes to call "a milestone" in her career, "as such roles are not written very often."

Talking about her performance as Shwetambari, a girl from an orthodox background, she says, "The role of a student of Physics at the Benaras Hindu University who turns into a spiritual leader completely unnerved me. It wasn't a cakewalk. I was as oblivious to the spiritual world as anyone of us may be at this age. I had to look like a spiritually enlightened girl who after being through an unsuccessful love affair, learns to rise above the joys and sorrows of life. It was difficult to strike a balance between the romantic and spiritual sides. I read the autobiography of Yogananda to get under the skin of Shwetambari."

For sometime now, Urmila has been trying out different roles. Khalid Mohammad's Tehzeeb, Chandra Prakash Dwivedi's Pinjar and Jahnu Baruah's Maine Gandhi Ko Nahi Mara are a few. She says, "It's a conscious decision. We actors have a lot to give back to society. In my limited capacity, I am doing the same. I have done quite a bit of glamour-driven roles. I don't want to be a sleeping beauty and let such a beautiful world pass me by. Some actors are scared to try out risky roles for they think it would affect their glamorous image. It annoys me no end. See Saif. His decision to do Being Cyrus is a wise one. Why can't we also have a Memoirs of Geisha? If we actors refuse to take risks, how can producers and directors make offbeat films? Believe me, films such as Maine Gandhi Ko Nahi Mara gave me so much creative satisfaction that I don't regret having done them."

Risk factor

However, it hurts her when such films don't run at the box office. "In the Hindi film industry, heroines take more risks than the heroes. I face no competition, for hardly anyone is doing the kind of roles I am trying to portray. But, it's sad that despite the tremendous effort, such films do not connect with the masses. How long will it take us to sensitise them?" she rues.

Whatever the fate of such films, Urmila continues her `risky' journey. For now, she has an edge-of-the-seat film Speed coming up in which she stars with Zayed Khan and Aftab Shivdasani.

RANA SIDDIQUI

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