Viewers
love to hate her, and yet can't wait to get back home, tune
in to the idiot box and relish watching choti bahu (younger
daughter-in-law) 'Pallavi's antics (played by Shweta Kawaatra)
to break up the joint family in the serial Kahani Ghar Ghar
Ki. The tussle between the eldest bahu 'Parvati' (played
by Saakshi Tanwar) and the youngest bahu 'Pallavi' has so caught
the fancy of audiences on the tube that it has become the second
most watched daily soap in India. Often it's the negative shades
that makes a story more gripping and interesting and Shweta
has more than managed to get into the skin of such a character.
The Delhi-based former ramp model got into acting by chance.
While doing her graduation she had entered the 'Femina Look
of the Year' contest. That is where she was spotted by Hemant
Trivedi and Lubna Adams (ramp show coordinators) who expressed
keenness in using her as a model for their shows and asked her
to come down to Mumbai. Since Shweta was just 19 years old then,
she chose to stay put in Delhi until her graduation. She secured
a degree in English literature from Jesus & Mary College in
the capital. But that initial brush with the arclights had left
an impression. And she came down to Mumbai looking for a break
in the fashion world. Lady Luck played her tricks and chose
instead to direct her into the world of histrionics - on the
small screen.
The serial Suhana Safar aired on Zee marked her debut
in serials and was followed by serials like Yeh Kahan Aagaye
Hum and Darr. She shifted to Mumbai city from Delhi
after signing up more daily serials like Ghar Ek Mandir
and Bandhan. Her most recent role in Kahani Ghar
Ghar Ki has viewers glued to the TV episode after episode
wondering what would be her next plot to score over her arch
enemy - her sister-in-law 'Parvati'.
Indiantelevision's correspondent Harsha Khot catches up Shweta
Kawaatra and finds out what makes this former national-level
roller skating champ tick, especially in roles such as the (in)famous
'Pallavi'.
Excerpts:
Shweta
Kawaatra & Saakshi Tanwar in 'Kahaani Ghar Ghar
Ki' |
What
made you take up acting?
I was still doing my graduation when I came to Mumbai
around four-and-a-half years back. I actually came here
because I was already into ramp modelling. I came to Mumbai
in the hope of getting into commercials. I started to
meet model co-ordinators and then through word of mouth
I got a call to audition for the serial Suhana Safar
which was going to be aired on Zee. I auditioned for it.
It was simple. And by just reading out a script I got
selected. |
When did you realise acting was what you wanted take up
as a career?
During the making of the serial Suhana Safar, after I
got friendly with the unit people. The initial phase of acting
was a bit difficult because you are not being yourself. A person
has to sit in front of the camera surrounded by 20 people, laughing
or crying not because you feel like doing so, but only because
the script says so. The very idea of laughing and crying or
conversing with someone, going through this whole gamut of emotions
really intrigued me. This made me more determined to become
an actress. The next serial I signed up was a Vivek Agnihotri
serial called Yeh Kahan Aagaye Hum. It had a slightly
different character in which I play a role of a business minded
diplomat. After this serial there was no looking back, and I
never really even tried to get into commercials again.
Among
the roles that you've played which is your favourite character?
My
favorite of course is 'Pallavi' in Kahani Ghar Ghar Ki,
because this character is allowed a lot of liberties. The minute
someone leaves the room I can make lots of faces, I can smile,
roll my eyes, give a dirty smirk or do whatever I feel like
doing but within the limitations of the character. There is
a lot more to express while playing a negative character than
the goody-goody kind.
Portraying a good character does limit you because in the eyes
of the audience you have to build up towards being a good person.
While being bad there are no such limits. Although now in the
current episode being telecast, it is being shown that the character
Pallavi has begun to mellow down a bit as Kamal (her husband
in the serial) has become a little more assertive in life. I
miss making those sarcastic comments because they had become
a part of me. When I reach the sets of KGGK I get into
the skin of the character but NOT before the camera rolls (smiles).
Another thing that makes Pallavi my favourite is the way she
dresses, walks, talks, her hairdo. Everything has been created
by me. Ekta (Kapoor - the creative head of Balaji Telefilms)
also guided me in giving the right kind of expressions.
What went into the shaping of the character Pallavi?
The character Pallavi is a creation of the mind, that too someone
else's mind. To create that personality I had to sit down and
talk a lot with Ekta who conceived the character and the serial's
director, since it does take time to know what this character
is all about.
Pallavi is usually dressed in chiffon or georgette saris and
her hair is always left untied. Generally, in Marwari families,
once you get married then you have to wear a pallu (veil)
covering your judha (hair bun), and a nath (nose
ring/ pierced nose).
During the first day's shoot, I, as Pallavi, was made to wear
juda, nathi, pallu bangles and dressed
traditionally like everyone else in the family. After the first
scene I went to meet Ekta…something wasn't right in my mind
about the way I was dressed. I spoke to her suggesting that
since the character is different, could I not be different in
my appearance also? I went on to describe how I saw the character
Pallavi . Not much of jewellery, simple earrings, no nathni,
as I didn't want to adorned with jewelry or makeup. Pallavi's
role demanded that I don't portray myself as being a happily
married women. My intentions are to break the house, then why
should I spend so much of my time sitting in front of the mirror.
It was not for my husband Kamal because I was not in love with
him. I don't even want him. We don't even sleep together on
the same bed. I sleep on the bed all alone while I make him
sleep on the sofa. Pallavi would follow what the family does
if she was the same as the other women in the family. Ekta was
pretty okay about the change.
I worked on the character and made it appear slightly different
from the rest. Ekta told me exactly how she wanted the character
to be.
You
wanted the character to be different because the character
is rebellious?
Well, not exactly. The character is negative so there
had to be a difference. Pallavi's intentions aren't the
same as everyone else's in the joint family. Pallavi has
come to their house solely with the intention of breaking
up their family as she thinks that the family had been
unjust towards her .
When I understood the character in my mind , I realised
that Pallavi has to keep herself under control and hide
her real self from her fellow characters. But in her own
mind there are no limitations; she can be as devious as
she wants to be. That's exactly the side Pallavi shows
to the audience when someone leaves the room.
|
Shweta
Kawaatra & Saakshi Tanwar in 'Kahaani Ghar Ghar
Ki' |
What went into sketching out the character?
I asked too many questions. I even asked how should the
character laugh - for maybe she is a reserved character and
wouldn't laugh the way I normally do in real life. I wanted
to know what exactly is her mental make-up; how she thought;
how she behaved, talked; how expressive is she? Is she timid?
Or is she glamorous?
While playing the role I tried to inculcate those qualities
on the set and tried to express them in that manner. Then I
spoke to the director to get his feedback. Was the shoot okay?
Or did I go overboard? Or am I doing less of what I should have
done?
It took me a maximum of about four episodes to really get into
the character.
Apart from Pallavi which other character got you completely
engrossed? The other role which had me completely engrossed
was Priya's role in the serial Darr. It was a completely
non-glamorous role. If I even put a little bit of lipstick I
would get a call from Star Plus asking me to remove that and
apply a neutral shade. I always had to be sore-eyed. Priya is
married to a crackpot, and is a mother of a six-year-old. The
character her husband plays is that of a psycho so she has to
deal with a lot of difficult situations. The character Priya
is very scared of life since she has never stepped out due to
her husband's dominance over her. But later on she tries to
get out of this relationship and goes on to become a strong-minded
person. I got very involved with that role because it I had
to portray a very emotional person.
Your career began with Suhana Safar. What was the
character like and what appealed to you about it?
I can't pinpoint exactly what appealed to me at the time
during the shooting of Suhana Safar. Now I can think
from an actress's point of view and decide for myself, but at
the time I didn't know what I wanted. Everything seemed to be
alright. The role was about a split personality, a Jekkyl and
Hyde character. The girl I had to portray has a very homely,
sweet character, she has a fiancé, but there is another side
of her where she's just the opposite. Her alter ego has a devil-may-care
attitude , wears micro-minis and wants to have a ball of a time
going to bed with every man who catches her fancy. When she
returns to her home and hearth she becomes the same homely person
once again, so the character really appealed to me. There was
nothing in both of the split personalities that I could completely
identify myself with.
|
How
did you feel when you were facing the camera for the first
time?
I recall that I was terribly nervous when I first
faced the camera. The first scene was that I had to seduce
the character Madhavan. The character that I had to portray
was the dark side of the split personality. In the scene,
she pours champagne in two glasses, goes around the bar
counter, downs the two glasses, approaches Madhavan and
runs a finger around his face. I expected something non-alcoholic
- says water or a soft drink but the producer had actually
kept a bottle filled with champagne. I was so nervous
that I simply couldn't give an okay shot. So we had many
retakes. I ended up drinking the whole bottle. And the
scene was shot successfully and okayed. But I got totally
drunk, losing control of myself. |
Did they want realism to that extent?
Couldn't water have been used instead of champagne? I
don't know. That is something I realised much later. I did
not know that they were not supposed to keep actual champagne.
I have no clue why they did that. By the time I realised it
was too late, then I never really bothered to ask them why
they did that.
What was going on your mind at that time?
Oh uh… twenty absolute strangers around me and I have to go
and seduce the character played by Madhavan! With no acting
background, I was so shy that earlier on I would not act in
front of the mirror even when the room was empty. So many
people sitting around me, watching what was happening with
their eyes on me, and to top it all I had to even seduce a
man! I think that the alcohol in the champagne worked and
made me lose all my inhibitions.
What are the things that you consider now while taking up
a role?
First of all, I see the depth of the character I have
to portray. If the character that I have to emote is not too
deep then I can't make the character strong. There are many
things that go into making a successful character. I can only
put life into it by good acting. But if the role is not written
well, I can't do much about it. It should be strong in some
way and only then I can make it stronger and act well. Of
course the director should be good, someone I feel comfortable
working with, otherwise I would be tense, if it's someone
who has a problem with me or with somebody else. I might not
be able to shut my mind from the problem and that could reflect
in my work.
What goes into enhancing the performance from the one
that is given in the script?
Enhancing the script, depends on how well you express
the tone of your dialogue delivery. I generally don't
interfere with the script unless I feel something is amiss
or if there is an important line and something needs to
be added.
Since I am so much into the character, for instance while
acting like Pallavi I would say certain things which I
thought would enhance the character. I would approach
the director and inform him. If the need be, I would call
up and check with the scriptwriters if it was ok if we
made some changes. |
 |
You also anchor a show. Will you tell us about it?
I am anchoring a show on the small screen called Ek Main
Aur Ek Tu. It basically involves interviewing a couple who
have had a love marriage. My script for this serial consists
of their real life story. I prefer not to read the script because
then I begin to look a little artificial and my questions don't
come out so smoothly. If you don't know the script, then you
can ask impromptu questions and your reactions are natural,
you don't have to act. And acting when I can be myself doesn't
give me a good feeling. In case I miss out an important question
than the director points it out, otherwise I just keep chatting.
Do you prefer to read the scripts in advance?
No, I like to read them on the sets just before the shoot so
that it remains fresh in my mind and I remember all my dialogues.
|
How
do you improve on your acting?
I improve on my acting by being observant and trying
out different ways of portraying the same character.
Sometimes my co-star and I try different ways to act
and it really helps if the co-star and you vibe well.
Chaya (Rinku) and me vibe well. In fact I've learnt
a lot about being spontaneous from her. She would add
a line suddenly in the middle of the script and cue
me to join. At times the repartee between
us
goes on even
|
Shweta
Kawaatra & Rinku Dhawan in'Kahaani Ghar Ghar Ki' |
|
when the dialogues in the script are over. Your really
have to be attentive, so that if somebody adds a line
in between the script you shouldn't be caught dumbstruck
and that has happened to me quite a few times. |
As an actress how have you progressed?
I have progressed a lot but still a have a long way to
go. When you get accepted by your audience, people come and
tell you that they appreciate your acting. The layman doesn't
really know you so when they come to you and tell you that you
are doing a good job, it feels that you must be doing a good
job. I definitely have improved. I have become more spontaneous,
not being spontaneous was my second biggest drawback (her first
drawback according to her is that she talks a lot and asks questions).
I would only go by what was written in the script. I wasn't
aware that it was okay to add a word or two of your own while
delivering dialogues as long as you remember to say them while
giving other shots and maintain consistency all throughout.
With experience I got adept at being spontaneous. Now I try
and experiment on expressions. Suppose I am given an expression
to act out, I try out those emotions in four to five different
ways.
What do you feel about the success that Pallavi has got?
I feel that whatever little hard work we have put in for
Pallavi's character role is paying off. I like it when people
say 'We hate you but we like you'. A lot of young girls come
up to me and tell me we want to be like you. I don't agree with
them because they don't realise that it is just a character
on screen. I don't want them to be like Pallavi because some
day they will also get married. I don't want them to get influenced
wrongly by this character and go about breaking their homes,
but I can't really go to everyone and tell them that this is
just a fictional character being played by me.
|
