Barkha Singh has already delivered two web series and is awaiting the release of a third one. After playing a filthy rich girl in Masaba Masaba season 2 and a desi one from Uttar Pradesh in The Great Weddings of Munnes soon after, Barkha will now be seen as a girl next door in Please Find Attached season 3. The actor says its just coincidental to have three consecutive releases within a month but is glad she got to play absolutely different characters in all three of them. Also read: Masaba Masaba season 2 review
In an exclusive chat with Hindustan Times, Barkha opened up about her different shows which allowed her to show a level of versatility.
You had multiple show releases in quick succession. Are you enjoying all the attention?
Of course, I am loving it. I am very grateful. You also see that people around you are genuinely happy and give very honest feedback. What is actually giving me joy is that all the three characters are very different from each other.
How is your upcoming series Please Find Attached season 3 different from other romcom shows?
It was one of the first shows that actually spoke about the work-life balance. Season one came four years ago when not many were talking about office romance. What’s different in this one is that it’s a journey that not just me and my co-actors have gone through but also our fans and audience have been through. They have also grown mentally, emotionally. Some were in school at the time of the first season and now they are in college. Even I have grown dramatically in my personal and professional life. Its not just a show, it’s a journey. It will release on Amazon miniTV from August 24.
What was the brief you were given for Masaba Masaba 2.
There was no brief. That’s the beauty of working with director Sonam Nair and casting director Panchami Ghavri. They just gave me the audition script and the scene and asked me to play with it. They just gave me a background of the character. The brief I created for myself was “b**ch with a good heart”. Aisha Mehrauli comes from a generationally wealthy family, she is not showing off but that is how she is. I didn’t want the character to be stereotypical. It was a very refreshing character, not very outright in your face. I tried to keep it as deadpan and as subtle as possible.
You had a scene in which you shout at Masaba and insult her. How did that come along?
The introduction scene was also my audition scene. That was first few days of the shoot, we had not become very pally. I would give credit to Masaba Gupta, she made sure that I was feeling easy. Everyone on set made sure I was at ease and gave me my time to do the scene. It was a lot of give and take — for me to give a piece of my mind to Masaba and for her to be receptive of that. I was full of nerves because there were too many lines and I didn’t want everyone to do too many retakes because of me. I just let it flow when I arrived on set. Even when Aisha is yelling, she is only talking to prove her point, nothing else.
What is the most peculiar reaction you have got for your performance in Masaba Masaba 2?
Almost everyone close to me had a similar reaction, ‘wow Barkha tu kitni b**ch hai (you are such a b**ch)’ or like my sister said, ‘you channelised your inner b**ch’.
Do you agree with the mindset of Aisha Mehrauli, that its better to do something then just thinking about what will happen?
I agree with it 100 percent. I moved from television to YouTube shows and then OTT shows, all of these are new things. Just as Aisha said, you don’t know how your journey will be, so that doesn’t mean you don’t start the journey.
You play a bride in both Masaba Masaba 2 and The Great Weddings of Munnes. How different would be your plans for your own wedding?
My mom is going to ask me this for sure. Whenever it happens, it will be a very small, private affair, closed affair.
_1661044760671.jpg?w=1110&ssl=1 "Barkha Singh featured in The Great Weddings of Munnes. ")
You recently danced on the roads to promote your show, The Great Weddings of Munnes.
I and Abhishek Bannerjee danced at the Andheri metro station which I never thought I will ever do in my life. That’s the beauty of being an actor, it makes you do things you never thought you would do.