Chhorii Actor Nushrratt Bharuccha Says Shelf life of Female Actors Has Increased

Ahead of the release of the horror film Chhorii SheThePeople got a chance to interact with actor Nushrratt Bharuccha. Here are snippets from the conversation.

If you are a Bollywood buff the trailer of the film Chhorii would have drawn your attention. This Nushrratt Bharuccha and Mita Vashisht film's trailer makes you uncomfortable for sure. Here is what Bharuccha had to say about the film, horror as a genre, playing a pregnant woman and how the place of the female lead has changed in her decade-long journey in Bollywood.

Traditionally, the female ghost just had the role of haunting people. However, in the recent past we have seen horror being used as a trope to challenge patriarchy, subjugation and to seek vengeance. So is horror as a genre in India changing? Bharuccha says, "Horror in Bollywood has become more real. What we saw back then was a certain imagination of the ghosts. Horror was and still is, a genre in Bollywood that has not evolved and raised the bar. An attempt at it worth doing."

On Playing a Pregnant Woman

Even though actors like Vidya Balan in Kahani and Kriti Sanon in Mimi have essayed the role of a pregnant woman, did she have any reservations in playing the role? Bharuccha who plays Sakshi in the film says, "I have been typecast in a certain kind of roles." No, she didn't get bothered by playing a pregnant woman. She adds, "Every creative person has a certain kind of sensibility of the things they have fun in doing. Once they have done those they want to try something new and that is human nature. We all want to try new things. As an actor I want to pick up new stories and I will have fun doing."

Chhorii is a remake of the Marathi film Lapachhapi which was released in 2017 and was directed by Vishal Furia. It has been released on Amazon prime today.

Horror was and still is, a genre in Bollywood that has not evolved and raised the bar. An attempt at it worth doing."

I have never taken crap: Chhorii Actor Nushrratt Bharuccha

We drifted a bit and spoke to her about navigating life on a day to day basis and asked her how she deals with sexist comments garbed as compliments. The actor says she doesn't get bothered by it. If it is just a joke, just fun and banter then she doesn't take it seriously. However, she acknowledges that it is a "problem and it is there. And some people do cross a line. When they do, I look at them and say don't cross the line. I have never taken crap nor have I given crap. I don't cross the line with people I interact with. Whether professionally or otherwise. And if I have I immediately take account and apologies for it. So when I don't do it there is no reason why you should. For me to point a finger it is very important to know what I am pointing a finger for."

She also spoke to us about how women need to use the tools they have to empower themselves. She said, "If you talk about giving women the tools to empower themselves. Those tools need to be used responsibly. You cannot be frivolous about it you cannot be uneducated about it or shallow about it."

You can watch our conversation with Nushrratt Bharuccha here:

The shelf life of a female actor has increased

Nushrratt has spent a decade of her life in Bollywood starting with Pyaar Ka Punchnama in 2011. Does she feel the place of the female actor has changed in the industry? "The shelf life of a female actor has increased in Bollywood. She is not going to be around for 5, 7 or 10 years of her career. She will be around as the young girl next door, as the working woman. She will be around as a married woman and as a pregnant woman. And as an elder sister and mother. She will be around a grandmother and she will kick ass," the actor signs off.

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