No Gandii Baat! Stree in Varanasi!

The last six months did for Flora Saini what 19 years of acting did not! She holds a loaded plate and she is not complaining. First, she played the ghost in the blockbuster ‘Stree’ and then starred in the Arshad Warsi-starrer ‘Fraud Saiyaan’, followed by web-series ‘Gandii Baat2’ and ‘A.i.sha My Virtual Girlfriend’. Now, she is doing back-to-back series and is currently shooting ‘Red Land’ in Varanasi.

“It’s a happy phase. I have started shooting ‘Red Land’, a political drama. ‘GB2’ and ‘A.i.sha’ has just come. Upcoming series include Inside Edge2, Nagesh Kukunoor’s ‘City of Dreams’ and ‘Title Role’. So there is lots happening which did not happen in all these years put together,” said the actor.

She expected more response in the film industry but got greater exposure through the web. “I thought films would flow after ‘Stree’, which did not happen. I have come to believe that things happen at their own pace, and they are beginning to happen. I am meeting people so let’s see. Also, we hear ‘Stree2’ will be made, so I hope I will be a part of that too,” she said.

“Without blinking I can say ‘Gandi Baat2’ was far more successful than ‘Stree’. I never thought that’s the kind of viewership adult content has or would have. In ‘Stree’, my friends complained that I was playing a ghost and my face was not visible. People loved that bhoot as she was just looking for love. Audience indentified with her but could not connect with me. Then came GB2 and I am so glad that it did,” she said.

She was supposed to do Season 1 which could not materialise. “Season2 of any show is always a challenge but the kind of response I got is unbelievable. As an actor, both were challenging. In ‘Stree’, in an industry that runs on beauty, playing a ghost where your face will not at all look pretty was tough. In GB2, the lesbian angle was a bit challenging and I was sceptical, but then it did wonderfully,” she said.

Flora feels that the web is providing better content for female actors. “Down South, it’s a male-centred industry where the girl gets to play similar kind of roles. Hindi industry offers more variety but the web platform is offering some phenomenal out-of-the box content. It’s a beautiful space to be in.”

The actor is enjoying shooting for political thriller ‘Red Land’. “It has Govind Namdev, Abhimanyu Singh and has been written and directed by Vivek Srivastava. It’s a political drama, so women are not at all ‘abla naris.’ They are calling the shots in the political domain. We all are playing mind-games and my character knows how to get work done sweetly. Set in Varanasi, it’s the era of the 90s that we are re-creating.”

This is her first visit to Varanasi. “My father was in the army, so we have been travelling. I was born in Chandigarh, educated in Delhi, shifted to Mumbai and worked down South. This is my first visit to Varanasi and I am looking forward to exploring the city,” she added.

First Published: Mar 13, 2019 14:22 IST