'I Haven't Done Comedy In A While': Madhuri Dixit On 'Maa Behen'

0:02Speaker 1:Welcome to another episode of Express Conversations, a podcast where eminent voices from the world of politics, covenance, sports, business and arts talk to us about their life, work and issues that really matter. In this episode, we hear from actor Madri Dickshi, director Suresh Trevani, producer Vikram Malotra and Ruchika Kapur, director of Original Films at Netflix India. Our guests are in conversation with Devan Sherma of The Indian Express. In this interview, the team talks about their upcoming film Marbihen Madri Dickshifts come back into the comedy zone, what they think about social media creators being cast in movies and shows and more.

0:45Speaker 2:So.

0:46Speaker 3:I want to start by asking you, Madri, that's so excited to see you do comedy than I thought that you were never got your due for the comic scenes and comic films that you did. I know that your contemporary secretary and Traveler they were they got a lot of these, you know, standout movements in comedy. But I want to thank you that you finally got getting her to do comedy.

1:09Speaker 4:Do you think it's.

1:10Speaker 3:A very underrated skill and that you haven't gotten your due for it, I.

1:15Speaker 5:Think, Raja was, Yeah, like the whole film was a comedy.

1:21Speaker 6:Of course, there's already a dramatic event.

1:24Speaker 5:Or a dramatic portion of the movie, which has to be you know, part of the whole. But but I have not done a comedy in some time. And even Calee was a comic film, and a lot of films I've done actually, yeah, but these past few years I have not really you know, got a film which was amazing, you know, which was funny, which was you know, situational kind of a comedy and stuff. So I think when he came to me with the scripts Rasha and I heard it, I I was like, yes, I want to play this character because she's so deliciously so chaotic, and she's a mother and she's breaking all the rules and she's modern, she doesn't care and the kind of relationship between the kids and her was was something which is completely dysfunctional. And I thought this was an amazing role for me to play, and that's why I agreed to do it.

2:23Speaker 3:Yeah, Raja, I remember that you wearing that white gray. You have done your fairh That's what I'm saying there. But I think that you haven't gotten your do and I hope Marvin does that for you.

2:39Speaker 6:Thank you so much.

2:40Speaker 3:Also, how was it, you know, riffing with Vikahen because I can imagine that he can be a very unpredictable scene partner.

2:48Speaker 5:Absolutely, and we always used to be on our toes when he was in the scene because we didn't know what and from where it's going to come from some you know outfield you know, and moglie like in a shot. And we always were very aware when we were doing scenes with him that he's someone who can be very extempore once the camera starts, and but I think it added to the whole chaos, which is amazing.

3:14Speaker 4:Yeah, it's nice to see Tripty.

3:17Speaker 3:And Hrna as you know the behnz and uh with Hna is she plays an influencer and she is an influencer, so it is great casting. But there's also this debate around, you know, casting influencers and how it's taking away from actors. I want to ask all three of you, since you have such a deep insight into the industry, of how do you think that's a valid argument and that's a concern or should we should we shouldn't be worried about that, and I think so.

3:47Speaker 7:I think it's absolutely unfair when you box people in fact influence the creators technically right, and like how Man that they was talking about it, that they actually take their photo shooting, putting the entire camera shooting for themselves, all of it, writing their own scripts. They're inherently great actress. Now just like how they're a good actors bad actors. There will be all kinds of talent. Like in the case of Dharna, not just because she was an influence of my writer actually had suggested to watch some of her reels and we really liked it. She went through a proper process of auditioning and I bet you I'll show you the auditioning.

4:26Speaker 4:It's excellent.

4:28Speaker 7:I saw her giving that, she gave it a test twice over and she nailed it. So for me, she's my actor. Everything else comes secondary. Okay, So that's my takeound it.

4:40Speaker 8:Yeah, you know, to be honest, today entertainment actually is fully democratized, and to a great extent, social media has enabled that sort of democratization. Otherwise, discovering talent is harder coming across people who are good at what they do, whether it's project and mismatched is here. They are first artists and they first actually have a latent talent. They have found a way of putting that out and for us, we will always look to cast somebody who's correct for it.

5:10Speaker 8:I don't ever think anyone turns around and says we must cast somebody because they are It actually comes down to your talent. But the fact that somebody is able to hone those skills over time because entertainment it is allowed for it. Social media has allowed for it. I don't think there's any running away from it, and we're actually embracing that very nicely. Triptis had her years of struggle. I've actually worked with her in nellam Man has had a journey of phenomenal journey soration, and I'm sure we come even though he's done a fairly large body of work.

5:39Speaker 6:I'm not sure about that struggle.

5:40Speaker 8:But everybody has their own story and journey and there are really no shortcuts. But the fact that everything is so democratic now is a big plus because everybody who's out there with the kind of talent that's needed with the dream, this is the best time for it to really come true.

5:55Speaker 3:Yeah, Miss Natches is actually a great example because it started off as casting and influencer. Now she's a proper actor and going into the fourth season, so very exciting.

6:06Speaker 2:Se the minute you actually the question you want to ask, What you're not asking is casting based on followers?

6:12Speaker 3:Right?

6:13Speaker 2:Yeah, that's so I'll voice that for you recipe for disaster. Casting based on fan connect casting based on inherent talent on screen, Casting based on relevance and discipline trumps followers any day, because the fan base for that particular individual whose content gets consumed on social channels will always spot fakeness or irrelevance before others. What that leads to is a dissonance on the home turf itself, on the social channels on which that individual has become big. So I absolutely echo with everything that Seriation Richika have said. Because you cast an actor, we're making a film. We are not seeking to go a million more on the outreach of the film when it gets ready. If that happens, great, that's a fan franchise that gets activated at the time.

7:14Speaker 2:But you don't go out and make a film by that logic. We just aggregate people who have fifty million followers and then just take a primary cast and hope that people will watch them.

7:25Speaker 7:And especially in this film, We are mad Vic.

7:28Speaker 3:I have to tell you that one of my favorite creators is doctor Nane. He's so insightful yet so candid, and it's been I was just thinking that it's been fifteen years since you relocated to India. How do you think he has embraced this new identity, this new culture, your city, and especially because he was such a successful surgeon back.

7:53Speaker 5:I think he's someone who is he's amazing. Wherever he goes, he gets into the culture, he will be one of them. And you know, he knows everything about everything. So he's someone who completely immerses himself. So when we came back to India, that's what he did. He completely immersed himself into He used to come to India when he was little to spend time with his grandparents. But I think once you go to the higher you know, excellence of education, it becomes very hard to visit every year. And there was a big gap in between when he had not come to India. But for him, he loves India. He just loves being here. He loves the people, and he's someone who is enthusiastic about everything as you've seen.

8:40Speaker 6:Through his insta he is. He's a doctor, but he's a techie. He is.

8:44Speaker 5:He loves to travel, loves to cook, loves to do all those kinds of things. And I think a lot of people ask me about marriage and they said, how is life, you know after marriage? I said, before marriage, I was just working. My life actually started after marriage. That's when I actually lived, you know. And so I'm so glad that I found him as a partner, and you know, we have a life together, which is amazing.

9:09Speaker 3:Yeah, the last time I met him was for fifteen August, which was on Netflix, your production, and he was so gong go our film production.

9:19Speaker 6:He knows everything. He knows everything about the camera.

9:21Speaker 5:That's you know, photographers who come home also to take pictures the consulate and say, oh, did you try this one?

9:28Speaker 6:Did you try to do?

9:29Speaker 4:You know?

9:29Speaker 5:And I'm like you and I don't know so much about the camera, but he does.

9:33Speaker 3:It is so much said about your beauty, but I don't think a lot of people talk about the grind that goes into it, the grit that goes into it. I recently learned and I don't know if you know, but it is unbelievable that that on Dola Dola you were four months pregnant.

9:50Speaker 6:I will say aarn was born in two thousand and three.

9:54Speaker 5:You knew the math, Yeah, so you know that I was under the weather because I was traveling a lot. I was going back and forth, shooting here, going back, and all my shoots were night shoots. So so for me it was like very grueling in that sense.

10:11Speaker 6:So I was a little under the weather. But but nothing like that.

10:14Speaker 4:Will I will do a fact check.

10:18Speaker 3:What I'm really glad about mar Behn is that they're not just Ma and Behen. They have a lot going on, They have their personal lives. I haven't watched the movie. I want to as soon as I can. But I'm a great admirer of you when it comes to playing you Know, our Mother, because whenever you have played it, you have given it that you know, I don't know for the lack of a better and mark marker touch, but also played a woman of your own every time, whether it's even Fame Game or the one that I think got really under the radar was Colung where you played a mom to Waranda, but she was so much more.

10:57Speaker 4:She was a dancer. I can't.

10:59Speaker 3:I can still with aaj and even like the queen of her Hawaili and also a broken heart, so she was so much more. It was a very complex rule. Were you, I don't know, disappointed that it did not work or not too many people saw it?

11:18Speaker 5:Well, I think you know, you do your best, yeah, and then you put it out there and then whatever happens happens.

11:24Speaker 6:You know, you can't really control that. But since you are.

11:29Speaker 5:Saying you've seen it, I'm happy you've seen it, and I'm sure that a lot of people like you who've seen it. But by and large, there are other factors that are going to y film doesn't do well, and so we basically leave it at that that I.

11:43Speaker 6:Have done my best and at some point somebody will watch it.

11:49Speaker 3:Finally, I want to credit you for you with Superinda, You've got the ball ruling for I think eighties and nineties stars are back in work.

11:58Speaker 4:There's an LG.

11:59Speaker 3:There's you, of course, Jackie Shoff in a superhero movie this week. So are we really back in the eighties nineties? How are we feeling?

12:09Speaker 4:When did these starts go out of it?

12:11Speaker 5:Exactly?

12:12Speaker 2:I mean they have ruled the hearts of the mind and the mind plans all over. I just think it's about seeing them in new lights. They've been relevant and being stars. You should see the minute Madori engages with her fans. That is across ages, segments, geographies. That is not bringing someone back, that is just being there and ruling.

12:39Speaker 4:It's it's just a letter of gratitude that I'm giving to you.

12:42Speaker 7:They are so for me. They are and she's I mean, that's what I'm saying. She's so relevant and the real joy of working with a talent like her, And that's something that I think is absolutely not true that they were never gone. Yeah, like there, they're the brightest stars out there.

13:03Speaker 3:One final thing that I want to I want you to clear the air about, is is there any conversation about coloniak returns of your return in cal returns.

13:13Speaker 6:Uh as of now? As of now, I don't know.

13:18Speaker 4:Okay, we'll leave it at that. Thank you so much. Can't wait to watch mar Ben.

13:26Speaker 1:You were listening to Marjorie Dikschirestreni, Wikram Malhotra and Chika Kapur on Express Conversations. If you like the show, then do subscribe to us wherever you get your podcasts. You can also recommend the show to someone you think we'll like it, share it with a friend or someone in your family. It's the best way for people to get to know about us. You can also tweet us at Express Podcasts or write to us at podcasts at in an Express dot com