‘Onscreen kiss between samesex actors will never be normalised’

Onscreen representation of homosexuality might have become a frequent phenomenon in Hindi films and web shows, but the hoopla surrounding it doesn’t seem to wane off. Needless to say, actor Mugdha Godse’s onscreen kiss with her coactor Shruti Seth in the web series Bloody Brothers, which released last month, grabbed the attention of many.

“Anything like this will never be normalised,” sighs Godse, adding, “I knew it would be the talk of the town. So, making it look good was my aim.”

Ask her if she had any apprehension about shooting for the scene and she says, “There were many mixed feelings initially to perform the scene. But eventually, we became comfortable and got into our characters. Shruti had rightly said, ‘performance triumphed discomfort’.”

The Heroine (2012) actor, however, shares that she isn’t open to doing bold scenes that are intended to only grab eyeballs. “In our cinema, many makers put bold scenes to amp up the masala quotient. Very few do it with real aesthetic sense,” she says, adding,

“I’m not up for nudity or too many bold scenes. Comfort is important while performing any scene.”

And while filming such intimate scenes, being surrounded by a safe and trustworthy crew is paramount for the 35-year-old. “For instance, in Bloody Brothers, our crew was not only trustworthy, but super helpful and kind, too. Shaad (Ali, director) knew what exactly he wanted and he designed the scene [in such a way that] discomfort took a back seat,” she elaborates.

With the changing landscape in the Indian content scenario, Godse’s glad that filmmakers are ready to accept actors like her in lead roles. “My priorities as an actor remain the same. What have changed are cinema and the film industry. Tall, dusky and non-commercial faces are not cast as vamps only today,” she signs off.

Mugdha Godse