She is definitely not your regular Bollywood actress. Sayani Gupta is also a singer, dancer, writer and fashionista who, over the past 10 years, has carved a niche for herself in the film industry with outings as varied as Margarita with a Straw, Parched, Fan, Jolly LLB 2, Axone, Article 15, Zwigato, Four More Shots Please! and Inside Edge. Sayani chatted with us about the impact of OTT on her career, the actors she wants to work with and what fuels her dream of winning an Academy Award.

A decade of being a part of the Hindi film industry — how has the journey been for you so far?

Sayani Gupta: When you are doing the journey, it is difficult to say how it has been because it is ever changing. Every day you wake up and it is a new day. It’s been an interesting mix of good and bad, like life. I have done interesting work which I am grateful for. I have made amazing friends and met lovely people on the way. Of course, you are never fully happy with what is happening and there is a sense of that always. But I don’t have too many complaints.

It’s commonly believed that actresses can’t be friends in this industry. Yet you have had friends here…

Sayani Gupta: Over the years I have had many co-stars who have been good friends and there have been many people that I have connected with, especially Kalki (Koechlin), Maanvi (Gagroo). It was so special to be part of Maanvi’s wedding recently. There are some you meet and keep in touch with, there are others you do not meet every day but they seem like really close people.

You have been a part of OTT for a while now with Four More Shots Please!, Inside Edge and Pagglait. Do you feel OTT changed you as an actress?

Sayani Gupta: OTT definitely, absolutely changed my life as an actress. I think it has changed everyone’s lives, not just actors but also technicians, filmmakers, writers and everyone involved in the process of filmmaking. Having said that, I honestly feel that it would have been a different world without OTT. One of the biggest things that OTT did was break the status quo, break the hierarchy of stars and actors. But now again they are going back to that star system, which is scary and unfair! There are problems in this field but I guess we are also very young when it comes to the OTT journey and what we are facing could also be teething problems. Post-Covid, things have changed drastically, so I think everyone is sort of dealing with it.

There has been a phenomenal rise of OTT platforms. Will it ever eclipse big-screen theatres or be as big?

Sayani Gupta: I think an OTT release is already as big as a theatre release and sometimes I think it is even bigger, in terms of the reach. But I don’t think watching films on the big screen will ever go away. It is a very community kind of experience and that will always be there. You just have to make films that are worth going to the theatre for. I think the last film many people saw was Pathaan. It was something else, felt festive and you had to go and be a part of the madness and euphoria around it. It just felt amazing, the energy was great.

I haven’t seen a lot of films in the theatre because they are not making films that are good enough to go to the theatre and watch. To get people to the theatre, you first need to make good films. I don’t know what happened, but we have been making terrible films in the last few years.

This year has been very special for the Indian film and music industry with multiple Oscar and Grammy wins...

Sayani Gupta: Yes, and we are ecstatic. I have known Guneet (Monga, producer) for many years. We have worked together and she is a friend. I am not at all surprised at the win. The Elephant Whisperers made by Kartiki Gonsalves is such a beautiful story and these are the films that make us, us. We are so blessed to be a part of a country with so many beautiful stories. There are such wonderful people with their journeys that need to be highlighted.

All That Breathes, the other film which was nominated but didn’t win, is spectacular. It’s absolutely sublime. Please watch it if you haven’t already. I haven’t seen such a beautiful film in a long time. Even if it didn’t win, it didn’t matter because they have made such a good film. MM Kreem, we have heard his music since we were children. So happy that the song (Naatu Naatu) got the Academy Award. He got his due.

You have worked with Shah Rukh Khan (Fan), Akshay Kumar (Jolly LLB 2) and Ranbir Kapoor (Jagga Jasoos). Who else do you aspire to work with?

Sayani Gupta: That is not a part of any aspiration for me. My aspirations are about other things, and they are much bigger. I would like to win an Oscar someday; it’s the only dream I have. The wins this year just makes me feel more confident I guess (smiles). That apart, I would love to work with all my friends who are from the FTII (Film and Television Institute of India, Pune). It is a lovely list of people right from Rajkummar Rao, Jaideep Ahlawat, Vijay Arora, Rasika Dugal, my classmate Bhuvan.

People are doing lovely work and it would be outstanding if we could collaborate. I would love to work with Vidya Balan, Rani Mukerji… I just saw her film Mrs Chatterjee Vs Norway… and then there is Kajol. Of course, I would love to work with Shah Rukh once again and also Ranbir. These days everyone is doing a good job and everyone is really serious about what they do and it’s really collaborative and fun.

You have been called an ‘intelligent actress’. Has that helped you or hindered you?

Sayani Gupta: Actually, everyone is intelligent here. Actors have to be intelligent people. It is just that some people act dumb. But yes, women get told these things in this industry. I got told that ‘you have to act dumb’.

You also sing. Tell us about it…

Sayani Gupta: I sing, I dance, I recite, I act – I am a Bengali! I have been dancing all my life and I have done a lot of it professionally of course. It was a big part of my life. In fact, I really need to bring it back because I really miss it. And music, yes, because my father is a musician; he is a singer, composer and lyricist. Music is in my blood, that’s my jam. I always sang. I used to do riyaz regularly. I do sing now, but I would like to do it more seriously. I have been told by my music producers that I should. I was going to sing for the Bartender but I am so lazy! I’d rather stay at home and sleep.

You have also always been stylish and well turned out…

Sayani Gupta: Style is inherent; either you are born with it, or you aren’t. Either you have a sense of aesthetics, or you don’t. I am lucky to be born with it and I just enjoy it. In real life, too, even if I just go downstairs I won’t wear something that isn’t well put together or something that doesn’t match. I have always been like that in my life.

What are you looking forward to the most now?

Sayani Gupta: I want to do international work and work in various languages, I want to work with directors I adore internationally and in India. I would love to be a part of their stories and as the protagonist, and have those kinds of exciting journeys with people who are good with their work. Pre-pandemic, I used to work at a very different pace. I would, at any given point, be shooting for three or four things at the same time but now I am taking it slower. While I have always been choosy, post-pandemic I have become even more choosy. Apart from that, I have also started creative producing stuff and I want to be able to create and enable films to happen and have more creative involvement in films.