Tara Sutaria says she can do more than just ‘look good alongside a hero’: ‘People have perceived me in a certain way because of…’ | Bollywood News

On stepping out of her comfort zone and picking a gritty character like Apurva where she doesn’t have a hero paired opposite her, Tara says, “The story is naturally and obviously very intense. There was a lot that all of us, as actors, went through the many layers of the characters in the story and the film. I am very grateful to Nikhil (Nagesh Bhat) sir. From day one, the conversations we had, the way that I got to understand his thought process, the way that he thinks, the way that he sees Apurva. He’s lived with the story the longest so it was very important for there to be a marriage of his thought and my thought but first and foremost his thought because it is his story, his film. I am very grateful that I found someone like him in the industry.”

“It is not very often that I have come across someone that I can trust implicitly with every scene. He has stayed true to the film but also more importantly to me, stayed true to every promise that he made to me. I am truly feeling very very blessed that I could work with actors like Rajpal Yadav sir and Abhishek Banerjee. They enhance every scene in a way that only they can. They are very unique and special human beings and actors,” she adds.

Tara then described how shooting for Apurva in a desert and doing action sequences without a body double was a unique experience for her. She shares, “It was very exciting for me as an actor who has never done a film like this. I had a few apprehensions about how it will turn out, because we were shooting in a desert that was an hour away from Jaisalmer, a place that I have never been to before, with people I had just been introduced to. There were some really tough action sequences which I had to do. It could have gone in any direction but I am very grateful that it went in this direction because when I watched the film, I have never felt more relieved, proud and capable. As an actor I feel like that’s the most rewarding feeling ever.”

Tara accepts that she has stepped out of her comfort zone with Apurva. “This was always the direction I wanted to take. I think because of the way I present myself, the way I inherently look people have perceived me in a certain way. In general there seems to be a preconceived notion that if you look a certain way, only a certain roles will come to you. And it is fine, it has been very enjoyable. But I think it is very dull and boring to imagine a woman in just one way. We are all multi-faceted, we all have multiple aspects to us that are much more exciting than looking good alongside a hero. I am very proud that I got to be my own hero in this film for the first time.”

Tara says she wants to do meatier roles. “It’s been a wonderful journey and a great experience doing the films that I have done till now. I have done films in which I look similar to this, if not this intense. In my last film (Ek Villain Returns), towards the end of the film, I was covered in mud and blood and there was a lot of action. So, it’s not like I haven’t looked like this before. I have always felt that I have the capacity to do this and I am very happy that it’s been fulfilled. I hope that this opens the door not only for myself but also for the people who have this perception too,” she concludes.