‘I DIDN’T EXPECT GERMANS TO BE SO WARM’

Actor Ashish Sharma is thrilled with the response he received for his part of a transgender at a film festival in Germany

When actor Ashish Sharma took up a feature film, wherein he plays a transgender, little did he know that the movie will find audiences worldwide. After getting screened at various film festivals across the world, the film opened at the Homochrom film festival in Germany recently. Talking to us from Germany, Ashish says, “The reception to the film was stupendous. We didn’t expect people to be so warm and receptive towards it as the film is in Hindi with a Rajasthani dialect, but still they felt every moment of the film. Usually, Germans are considered serious but the audiences were laughing, crying and went ‘awww’ at many instances from the film,” says Ashish, who has shows like Rangrasiya and Siya Ke Ram to his credit. The reception for the film has made Ashish realise that “cinema is universal and one need not necessarily know the spoken language”. The Prithvi Vallabh actor says, “Emotions can be understood despite different cultures and languages. It was the first Indian film to be selected for this festival which was a big honour. The organisers felt that the story had a universal appeal and they loved the cinematic appeal of the film. Films on trans people are usually depicted from the society’s point of view, but this movie looks at it from an opposite direction. Basically, every human being wants to fit into society — be it in a peer group, family, at work or in school, and that emotion resonates in the film too.” The film is an adaptation of a short story, Sanjha and has been penned and produced by Ashish and his wife Archana Taide.

Playing the character has been an eye-opener for the actor who enjoys delving deep into the characters he essays. He says, “Playing a trans person is anyway a challenge as you are portraying a gender that you are not too aware of. I shot for the film right after wrapping up Siya Ke Ram. It was all the more challenging for me as I had to break away from Ram’s image. It took me five months of preparation to get in that zone — physically and psychologically.” He lost 20 kilograms for the role and the muscles he had acquired for Ram’s role. But more than the physical change, the psychological aspect was tougher for him. “While the experience of shooting the character was gruelling, it also helped me evolve into a better person,” he signs off.

Emotions can be understood despite different cultures and languages. ASHISH SHARMA, ACTOR