TV viewers must have seen Vaishnavi MacDonald in may roles but nothing like what we are seeing her in Dangal’s Aye Mere Humsafar as Surajmukhi – the mother of Vidhi and Payal. Surajmukhi according to Vaishnavi is a character that is distinct and that she relates to at a very personal level. Having played characters that are mode modern and educated, Vaishnavi researched on the traits of local Marwadi women, their habits, behaviour, dressing, language, etc. to portray Surajmukhi in a relatable manner. Read on to know more
What made you say a yes to Aye Mere Humsafar?
Firstly, it was Shashi Sumeet Productions and they are like family to me. I am always ready to work with them whenever it is possible and secondly I could see that the TRP of Dangal is always high whenever I used to check the charts. So I always had a good impression of the channel even before the show was offered to me as I could visibly notice its reach in the audience especially in the rural belts. So I thought that as I have worked with almost all the channels so why should I leave out Dangal. And I loved the story too. The character is very relatable, the co-actors are amazing and the whole set up in all is beautiful. This is why I said yes to Aye Mere Humsafar.
Tell us about your role in Aye Mere Humsafar?
Surajmukhi is a single mother. She has the responsibility of her two daughters and has to work hard to make the ends meet. She single handedly brought up her daughters with lots of morals, ethics and modesty. Vidhi is more a reflection of her mother so the strength which Vidhi gets, is from Surajmukhi. Even though Surajmukhi is a strong woman, she is also conservative which is why her primary goal is to get her daughters married. She thinks this because she has a lot of responsibilities and she doesn’t want anyone to get a chance to mock them.
What makes the show different from other shows?
This show is different from others simply because the story is about a girl who is not willing to get married before achieving her dreams of becoming an IAS officer. She breaks all the norms of the society to be a successful officer in her life. The story is not typical like the rest of the saas bahu shows. Infact the mother-in-law also is very progressive. This makes the show special. Hence, I love the overall idea of the show.
Tell us about your bonding with the co-actors?
My overall bonding with the cast is very good. Everyone is very down to earth, and homely, They are so loving and warm that it makes our bond better. On screen I have a great bonding with Tina and Urfi. I really feel motherly towards them and they also relate to me as a mother and a friend. There is a lot of warmth and comfort between us which reflects on the screen.
Any fun BTS on the sets of AMH?
There are lots of fun elements on our sets. Biggest one is Neelu Vaghela ji. She is so funny in real life that I often tell her to do a comedy show because of her on spot comic timing and sense of humour. Namish is also very funny and he cracks a lot of jokes and pranks on the sets.There is lots of offscreen humour like Tina always teases me because I have a habit of going overboard with my preparation for the roles. I check google for marwari or gujrati words. So Tina always teases me by saying what have you Googled today for your role. We also make so many videos for social media so that we entertain ourselves and keep ourselves occupied. We eat together and that’s also a fun time for us. Even during such grim situations because of covid we have found a space of keeping yourself in a lighter zone. We keep laughing and keep are surrounding happy
How has your journey in the industry been so far?
The journey has been very good. I got a chance to meet a lot of great people. I’ve always received a lot of warmth from the people I worked with and I have witnessed a lot of love and unity in this industry. I feel blessed and because of God’s grace I have gotten a chance to work with amazing channels like Dangal and beautiful people like Shashi Sumeet Productions.
A message for the viewers?
Please give abundance love to our show Aye Mere Humsafar. Be with us like you have always been and let’s make it a huge success.