Nushrratt Bharuccha: Have never shied away from supporting the script beyond my own beliefs

Actor Nushrratt Bharuccha says she’s always strived to steer away from her prejudices and beliefs while picking projects, and her latest release, Janhit Mein Jaari, echoes that.

“I started from the girl no one liked, as an annoying and manipulative girlfriend. I have come from hate to this point. I don’t think any actress would have chosen a role like that… We knew that, we were not dumb, or naive. But we chose to do it,” she tells us while referencing her film, Pyaar Ka Punchnama franchise.

She adds, “At one point, I called myself a villain (Sonu Ke Titu Ki Sweety; 2018). I don’t think I ever shied away from supporting the script and the need of the role beyond my own prejudices or my own beliefs or my own biases towards it… I have two or three more female led films lined up. I don’t know how this is happening. It’s not like I’m going out there and looking for it. But I think the most rewarding part is that the audiences are liking it. I am a female actress that has a voice and has a space of my own”.

The 37-year-old is seen selling condoms in a small town in Madhya Pradesh in her latest release, as the film aims to start a conversation around illegal abortions, overpopulation and the taboo attached to condoms.

“The subject gave me an opportunity to headline a subject that I don’t consider taboo. Very rarely have I succumbed to societal or peer pressure, so it (doing the film) was not a difficult choice,” the actor shares.

She continues, “I think we should do something which is better for all of us, moving ahead in the future, rather than regressing and being stuck in a mould created by people for their own reasons. Those molds are not really necessary and relevant today”.

“If we are to understand how women should be independent financially, work, and get education… Like I’m the sole bread earner of my family. There are many more women taking the forefront. Toh incheezun mein aake agar hum sharam kar jayenege toh kaise chalega,” the Dream Girl (2019), Chhorii and Ajeeb Daastaans (both 2021) actor mentions.

While Bharuccha and the makers are proud of the film’s subject, they had a tough time promoting it. “We go on several shows to promote a film. All of them told us that we can’t talk about this topic (condoms) on national television. I don’t get that. This film got a U/A certificate and the censor board gave us a clean chit. Then I wonder what is it that will impact the audience negatively,” she says.

This has shocked Bharuccha who mentions, “If the smartest people in the business, don’t want to understand it and take that step along, toh main kya mein rural mein kya hi jaun”. “I can see the blaring reality in my own metro city. We have a long way to go,” she concludes.