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Not doing anything on screen was the hardest: Banita Sandhu
Debutante actor Banita Sandhu plays a comatose girl in October
Language was definitely tough, but in the film, my dialogues are limited, so we kind of got around that well. Both Shoojit sir and I were very stubborn that this character will have my voice because there’s so much more to the performance than my dialogue
BANITA SANDHU, ACTOR
Staying still with her eyes shut and being passive on screen was the hardest challenge for Brit-Indian actor Banita Sandhu while shooting for Shiuli, the role in October.
The actor who plays a comatose girl in Shoojit Sircar’s lauded film, says a lot of homework went into playing the girl’s character, who plunges from a high rise to a near-death experience. “I am not going to lie. It was quite annoying being still for so long especially when my eyes were shut. We shot the film chronologically, so I had my eyes closed for about a week. When I finally got to open them, you can’t imagine how relieved I was,” she says.
The actor, who resides in London and is pursuing her graduation King’s College, says the most irksome part of doing the role was to cease all activity. In fact, Banita looked forward to some scene that involved movement. “So I tried to grab any moment, where I had to do something. And when a physically demanding scene came, I was actually able to do it easily for I was so frustrated acting still,” says Banita could feel her comatose character’s frustrations. “We were both sailing in the same boat. When I finally got to move, it came out so well on screen because there were frustrations within me, too. It was like the character and me were kind of going through the same thing at the same time.
I guess that’s why role comes across so real on screen. I bet Shoojit sir planned it that way,” says the actor. Born and brought up in the UK speaking in Hindi was a problem for Banita. “Language was definitely tough but in the film, my dialogues are limited, so we kind of got around that well. Both Shoojit sir and I were very stubborn that this character will have my voice because there’s so much more to the performance than my dialogue,” says Banita.
However, it was not the language barrier that irked Banita the most. “A lot of people appreciated on what I did with my eyes to emote. The language was tough, but I think honestly the hardest part was not doing anything on the screen for 10 to 12 hours a day. I used to get jealous and frustrated as everyone around me was acting,” says Banita, who shares screen space with actor Varun Dhawan in the film, whom she found sweet, humble and kind-hearted.