Actor Sonakshi Sinha says her streaming debut "Dahaad", which will see her in the role of a cop hot on the heels of a serial killer, was a true "clutter breaker".
The upcoming Prime Video crime-drama series is created by filmmakers Zoya Akhtar and Reema Kagti. Kagti also directs the eight-part show with Ruchika Oberoi of "Island City" fame.
"When I met her (Zoya), I told her that there was a period when I had started saying no to every film offer that came to me because nothing was exciting enough for me to get up and be that character for 30 to 40 or 90 days. It ('Dahaad') was a no-brainer. I said yes immediately," Sinha told PTI in an interview.
The actor said she was getting "mundane" offers, but the show came as a welcome change.
"On paper, the character (Anjali Bhaati) was so powerful. For me, as an actor to be able to do that kind of role, it was just so exciting at that point of time in my life, where I was. I was being offered repetitive things. This was truly a clutter breaker,” the 35-year-old actor said.
Sinha, known for films such as "Dabangg", "Lootera", "Kalank", "Rowdy Rathore" and "Son of Sardaar", said she was not concerned with the medium.
In fact, the show came to her even before the OTT boom happened during the pandemic.
"She (Zoya) came to me before the pandemic. The whole OTT boom happened much later. I said yes to it even before that. As an actor, I see it as a role, not the platform. Is it good enough for me to do it? Is it really shaking me up, like, 'I have to be this character'? Whether it is an OTT (project) or a film, it doesn’t really matter.” In "Dahaad", Sinha plays a feisty cop trying to solve a case where women are mysteriously found dead in public bathrooms.
From being a restless actor, Sinha said, she has evolved into someone who wants to portray strong women on screen.
Which is why, the actor, who started her career in 2010 with Salman Khan-starrer "Dabangg", decided to focus on quality projects.
"I was a restless actor. I would just work to be working. In fact, in my first few years, I did so many films, like, in ten years, I had done about 30 films. I worked like crazy. Then came a point, when I started doing solo films. It was like, I tasted blood.
"I want roles with more substance, want to play stronger female characters. So, my choices changed. And no matter the outcome, as an actor, I had an experience. That is something I really enjoyed. I want to keep doing that,” Sinha, who has more recently fronted female-led films like 2016 action-thriller “Akira”, comedy dramas like “Khandaani Shafakhana” and “Double XL”, said.
From playing the conventional heroine in hero-led projects to now fronting their own stories, women actors have evolved in cinema, the actor observed. "There are a lot of people making a lot of movies where women are the protagonists. It is a welcome change. It has been the opposite case for so long. The audience is accustomed to seeing a hero or a male actor on screen now. We are slowly making our way into that audience," she said.
Also featuring Vijay Varma, Gulshan Devaiah and Sohum Shah, “Dahaad” will start streaming on Prime Video starting May 12.
It is produced by Excel Media & Entertainment and Tiger Baby, with Ritesh Sidhwani, Farhan Akhtar, Kagti, and Zoya Akhtar as executive producers.
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