You started out very early.
I did two film projects as a child but that was more like a hobby. In Mujhse Dosti Karoge, I played the younger version of Kareena Kapoor’s character Tina.
You were in Parineeta, too, right?
I was in Class VIII. I used to do ads with Pradeep Sarkar sir (the director of Parineeta). Uss film mein unhonein sabko liya jinko woh lucky maante thhe. I am in the song Piyu bole for just a scene. We shot in Kandivali (in Mumbai). My unit tests were on that time. Sir asked me to come for half a day. Exam ke beech ke din main bhaag ke shoot karke chali aayi padhai karne. Sir is a family friend. His son Ronit was also my classmate in college.
Did you want to join films since then?
Not at all. Had I known I would become an actor, I would not have studied so hard. I have two Masters degrees. At the cost of blowing my own trumpet, I had topped Maharashtra in Arts in my Class XII Boards. I got record marks in second language French across all streams. My name was in the newspaper (laughs); I had even got a campus placement after passing out of St. Xavier’s.
You have launched a YouTube channel.
I started that on the side in 2018. Apart from acting, I am passionate about travelling. My channel, with three lakh subscribers, is travel-centric. There are travel blogs from Uzbekistan, Australia, Spain, Finland... For me, 2019 was all about travel —10 countries in 12 months! Some were family trips, others were on work for tourism boards of those countries.
So the lockdown must have been hard for you mentally?
Yes. When the lockdown was imposed, I was in Calcutta shooting a travel show. We tried to get out but every flight we booked was getting cancelled. Finally I was on the last flight that could take off for Bombay. Otherwise I’d have been stuck in Calcutta through the lockdown!
How would you describe the film 36 Farmhouse?
A pure mass entertainer. It has comedy, drama, emotion, mystery... a great ensemble cast. It is Subhash Ghai sir’s first OTT project. We shot in a farmhouse in Lonavala in April-May 2021.
Barkha Singh has her hand kissed by her screen aunt, played by Flora Saini, in 36 Farmhouse.
What about your role?
I play Antara, the granddaughter of the house. She shuts her boutique for the lockdown and comes to the farmhouse with a masterji, or a tailor, played by Amol (Parashar). Though she comes from a very well-to-do family, she is humble. She takes a stand for people who she feels are not being treated with respect. She is pure, pious and vulnerable. She tries to appear stronger than she is. She is a very lovable character.
The film seems to revolve around the property and a matriarch.
Yes. The matriarch is my naani. The story is based on a simple premise — that some steal for need and some for greed. There’s a murder, a romantic angle... Everything happens in the farmhouse in those few days. The director is Ram Ramesh Sharma, who has trained under SG sir. So the film is in classic Subhash Ghai style with a contemporary touch. He was always on the set. He grooms you and never holds back on constructive criticism.
The film has songs as well.
Yes, this is SG sir’s debut as music composer. There are two songs — Mind your business, picturised on Sanjay Mishra sir and Ashwini ma’am (Kalsekar), and another romantic number on Amol and me, sung by Sonu Nigam.
What else are you working on?
There’s a whole bunch of shows that I did in 2021. So I am looking forward to several releases this year.
