Versatile actress was all grace personified as Satrupa in Star Plus’ Rishton Ka Chakravyuh, her last outing on TV. But now, viewers will see a 360 degree change in her personality wherein she goes totally bold for an episodic story in ALTBalaji’s upcoming series, Gandii Baat.
Although Narayani Shastri has done a very bold role on the web space, she would still want digital content to come under some kind of censorship. “This is needed, as you are virtually selling soft po*n to make money. Where is the required decency? Having said that, the censorship has to be something unlike the joke that film certification has become of late e.g. the Padmavat controversy.”
Talking about her episodic story in Gandii Baat, which talks about the seamier side of rural India, she says, “I play a rich hot woman, Preeto, who is s*x crazy and is very male-like in getting what she wants. She is married to a man double her age. Everybody knows what is happening. Then something weird happens – I can’t say more, why don’t you watch it?”
Talking about the mindset of women in rural India, she adds, “You need to understand that rural India thinks differently. The concept of women’s liberation is alien to them. Also, since they are very family-driven, their approach to s*x and violence is very different from ours.”
“Forget rural India, even urban Indians are very sex-starved. Have we ever wondered how we came about? We can’t even show a kiss on TV without things going overboard,” the actress states.
Here, Narayani says that there was a lot of skin show and making out scenes in her story. “Actually, the younger actors, with whom I had to do those scenes, were very embarrassed. But I told them it is fine, as the entire process is very mechanical. You say cut and life goes on. And why should I feel edgy? I am not Preeto in real life. An actor anyway needs to be naked in the head.”
Appreciating the way it has been shot, Narayani states, “Ekta’s team has handled the entire process quite aesthetically. Guess they must have also learnt from the previous stories; mine was canned last.”
What did your husband feel about it? “He was very supportive and told me to go for it, as it was something I had not done before. He fully trusts me; no wonder I married him. After playing a good bahu for years, I took up a negative role in Rishton Ka Chakravyuh and was satisfied creatively.”
Looking ahead, she would not mind more bold stuff. “But yes, it must make sense to me. And the s*x should not be added just to titillate the audiences.”
Looking forward to seeing this avatar, Narayani!!