Dia Mirza is all set to debut on the digital space with ZEE5’s upcoming web series Kaafir. The series showcases the story of Kainaaz (Dia Mirza) a Pakistani woman who crossed over to India under mysterious circumstances and is being held prisoner there along with her daughter. Accused of being a militant, Kainaaz gets help from a journalist-lawyer Vedant (Mohit Raina), who “makes her justice his sole objective.”
Commenting on being part of the series, she says, “I was born to a Bengali mother and a Christian father and was raised in a Muslim home. I started going to school like every child. When they used to ask me what are you, I did not know what to say. I went back home and asked my mother ‘what am I?’ She looked at me and smiled and said ‘I am hoping you are a good human being in the making.’ You first religion is humanity. This is what I learned in my life. I consider myself privileged and honoured to be a part of a story that has made me a better human being. I have to take this opportunity to thank Siddharth Malhotra and his wife Sapna. Bhavani Iyer and Sonam for believing in me and most importantly ZEE5 for backing a story that matters so much to all of us.”
Ask about the experience working on the digital platform, she shares, “As an artist, you have more opportunity to invest and reveal the character within the story. You don’t have that luxury always in a film. Given the fact that there is limited time and space. In the story like this, having the time, gave so much as an artist to explore. All the platform are different in their own ways. I thoroughly enjoyed working on the digital platform. I had a great story and a perfect character. Within five minutes, I decided to work in Kaafir.”
Dia is playing mother to the little girl Dishita Jain, talking about the child, she adds, “Dishita is a very special child. She made me a mother. She is a blessed child and I had fun while shooting with her. Dishu (Dishita) brought a different side of Mohit. He is wonderful with children. They (Dishita and Mohit) share a very special relationship on-screen and off-screen.”
Lastly, sharing about the complexity of the character, she says, “I have not come out of the character yet. There have been so many scenes where even the camera had stop rolling, we were in. When I read the script, the only thing that I was conscious of and worked hard on was to become Kainaaz. I didn’t want to act. This story has empowered me unlike any other. The story just makes you feel and that is the power of Bhavani’s writing.”
Good luck!