EXCLUSIVE | Sonakshi Sinha on Dahaad: ‘I want to tell stories of women that are strong and powerful’

Sonakshi Sinha was very recently seen in Amazon Prime Video’s Dahaad and has been receiving rave reviews for the same ever since its release. Mixing crime drama with social commentary Dahaad engages the viewers till the very end. In an exclusive interview with Firstpost, Sonakshi who plays a cop on the show talks about her preparation for the role learning the Rajasthani dialect, women’s roles changing she getting choosy with cinema and more.

Edited excerpts from the interview

What was the preparation for Dahaad like from action to dialect?

All the actors did a lot of workshops for the show since Reema Kagti and Zoya Akhtar wanted to create a very authentic world. Our dialect coach Bharat Bhatnagar trained us with the language. Actually, actor Vijay Varma has Rajasthani roots and Sohum Shah is from Rajasthan, so for them it was fairly easy. For me it was something that I was attempting for the first time. My coach felt I picked up the dialect very quickly, and it was very exciting to learn something new you know for a role like this.

What do you have to say on women centric content getting popular with OTT boom?

I think it’s a great time to be a woman actor in cinema. Brilliant roles are being written for them specially after the OTT boom that happened during the pandemic. So much great content is going around and it has put filmmakers at ease also without the added pressure of box-office. With OTT there is no box-office pressure. It encourages them to tell more stories about women so I think it’s great. As an actor, I was looking for roles like these. I was chasing roles like these and that’s how I did cinema like Akira, Noor, Khandani Shafakhana, and I will continue to do that.  Dahaad came to me before the pandemic happened, there was no reason for me to say no.

On content changing with the digital platform?

I guess, nobody expected that the OTT would become such an important part of our life. But theatre has its own charm. If you want to sit at home and enjoy your own time, the OTT is there.

How choosy are you getting with roles now?

I am choosing them very carefully because I feel I have done all sorts of roles when I started off, so I feel I have explored them all. Now I want to tell stories of women that are strong and powerful, so that I can be someone who can empower women. When a role like Anjali Bhaati comes to me, I am more than happy to do it.

What attracted you the most about Dahaad?

The way it covered a lot of topics and the way it represented a lot of things on paper. I wanted to work with Excel as they are doing such amazing work over the years, all of this was there for me on a platter. It didn’t put me off in any way, these are things that need to be spoken about and Dahaad succeeded in putting the message across.

What do have to say on the physical training bit for the show?

I had to learn a lot for this show and I thoroughly enjoyed myself. Now, I am a trained Taekwondo student. I had to learn Judo, I had to work on my fitness to play a police officer and look the part. And most importantly, Reema and Zoya told me I had to look like a no-nonsense tough cop. So I didn’t really have to be a particular size to play the part. All I had to be is be strong and look the part. The routine I was following was simple. I was finishing 10,000 steps a day, and during the shooting I would jog all over. I was eating clean and that is most important to stay fit because eating right is seventy percent of your staying fit journey.

Rarely do we get to see a woman riding a bullet, so did you learn how to ride a bullet for Dahaad or you already knew it?

I had to learn how to ride it for the series. And I love it so much now that I have brought a bullet for myself. Now I am a proud owner of a bullet.

What’s next?

I am shooting for Heeramandi, really looking forward to it, which is being directed by Sanjay Leela Bhansali. I have shot a couple of films that are up for release.

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