Mona Singh-and-Ashutosh Gowariker-starrer Kaala Paani has been receiving rave reviews ever since it started streaming on Netflix. Radhika Mehrotra, who made her OTT debut with Kaala Paani, chatted with us about landing her role in the survival drama, the challenges of shooting in the Andaman and Nicobar Islands and her aspirations as an actor.

How did you bag the role of Dr Ritu Gagra in Kaala Paani?

Radhika Mehrotra: I got the role through an audition process. The credit for this goes to casting director Vaibhav Vishant from Anti-Casting. I did two rounds of auditions including one with the directors. After that, there was no follow-up or call back for three-four weeks. I thought that I lost the opportunity. In my head, I had moved on.

One day I got a text message from Vaibhav saying, ‘Please block your dates.’ At that point, I didn’t understand what he meant because as an actor you audition for a lot of things from advertisements to films. So, I called him and asked what happened. He said, ‘You have been locked for Kaala Paani. You’re doing the show.’

Honestly, I did not believe him. I thought that some more processes must still be on. I couldn’t believe that I just auditioned and got the part. I felt like I had won the lottery because I have been a fan of the works of Amit Golani, Samir Saxena (directors), and Biswapati Sarkar (writer) for a long time. I was excited and looking forward to working with them.

What was the makers’ brief for you and how did you prepare for your role?

Radhika Mehrotra: I believe that Biswa (Biswapati Sarkar) is the heart and soul of this show. He has written such a well-researched show with such full-fledged characters and attention to detail. It is something that I have not read in a really long time. Any detail or information that I was looking for as an actor was there in the script. Other than that, if I had any questions, I could just call them up and ask. The directors were very supportive and approachable.

Most of the preparation was about reading the material provided by them. I just had to go through them a couple of times to ensure that I was on the same page. Other than that, the character that I played had to use a lot of medical jargon; I had to get that right. I am a medical drama fan. I love watching medical dramas, so that helped me in getting the medical jargon absolutely right.

Was Kaala Paani entirely shot on the Andaman and Nicobar Islands?

Radhika Mehrotra: We shot most of the show in the Andamans. We had a schedule of three and a half months and 70-80 per cent of the show was shot there. Some bits were shot in Mumbai and we went to Sri Lanka for some patchwork.

Our lives had become like a survival drama because we were staying on an island for all these months. Andaman has yet not been explored a lot. It is untouched, serene and one of the most beautiful places I have been to in my life. When we went there, we realised that there was limited network and internet. You’re more or less cut off from the world.

For the first few days, we were getting used to that life. It felt like, what do we do with our lives now? But that was also the beauty of it. All of us enjoyed each other’s company, there was a lot of camaraderie between us and we had become a family. We used to go scuba diving, hike and explore the terrains of Andamans on our off-days. So, work and vacation both were happening.

How challenging was the shoot of Kaala Paani?

Radhika Mehrotra: A lot of the shoot happened in the forest. There were instances when a snake would pass by you in the middle of a shot. We were told that the snakes were non-poisonous but we’re not used to snakes passing by us just like that, right? After three-four days, we got used to it. We understood that it was us who were encroaching on their space. That respect for nature and wildlife developed in all of us.

We were shooting in the forest in scorching heat and our base camp was 3km away. To get food and water, we had to walk that distance back. But all of us were so committed, invested and excited about making the show that we took the difficulties in our stride and made the most of it.

What did you learn from your co-actors Ashutosh Gowariker and Mona Singh?

Radhika Mehrotra: There was a lot to learn just by observing the way they work. You can silently watch them do their thing. It was a big learning just being around them on the set. Ashutosh sir is very calm and composed. He takes his time. He never gets hassled. He is a very gentlemanly and calm person. That energy gets passed onto you as well and you become patient and calm in adverse situations. It is very important when you’re making a show like Kaala Paani.

Mona, on the other hand, has a very high energy. Her laughter is contagious. She will put you in a happy place. She is very warm and loving. I had a blast working with her. We used to have long conversations without realising time had gone by.

This is your Hindi as well as OTT debut. Does it feel like a big validation for you to see the show being well-received?

Radhika Mehrotra: I am very happy. As an actor, you don’t have many options. There are many things that are not in your control. But even in that situation, you make certain choices about the kind of work you want to do or don’t want to do. You wait it out.

This is something that I find as a beautiful parallel, between the character (Ritu) I played in Kaala Paani and my personal life. Ritu has these voices in her head that follow her everywhere. She has so much to deal with but she has conviction. She knows that she has set out to do something and she needs to do that no matter what. That’s something that I have followed in my life too.

Doubts and questions will arise but you have to follow your faith and conviction. At the end of it, you will see the light. I have come here by following that approach. I am very grateful that this is happening to me at this point in my life. I am also aware that there are going to be highs and that is going to be followed by a lull. So, I want to be very balanced. I don’t want to take this praise too seriously.

Did you always want to become an actor? When did the acting bug bite you?

Radhika Mehrotra: It’s a clichéd thing to say but I wanted to become an actor ever since I was a child. I used to tell people that I wanted to become an actor. That’s the only thing I wanted to do. But I think it stems from my father. He has an immense love for movies. He used to encourage me and my brother to watch movies. He used to book tickets for movies, old and new. It used to be an experience for us. I think the fascination started from there.

When I went to college, I joined the theatre society there. We started doing plays and that’s when I realised that this is a whole different world of acting and there’s much to learn. I started reading a lot of plays and books on acting. I did workshops. Once I completed my college education, I went to my mom and said, ‘I want to become an actor but I don’t know how to do it.’ She also didn’t have an idea about how to go about it because she is a principal and my dad is a businessman.

Then she told me to join an acting school and get trained. She said that if I wanted to pursue this, I needed to meet like-minded people. That advice struck a chord in me. I applied to the Lee Strasberg Institute in New York and got through. I did a two-year acting course and met like-minded students, actors and teachers. I listened to their stories and struggles, and I understood what I had to do to have a career in this field. Then I came back to Mumbai and started auditioning. I came to the city at the beginning of 2018 and I landed the role in Kaala Paani towards the end of 2021.