Actress Nushrratt Bharuccha believes women, both in films and in real life, have become much more vocal about their point of view on various social issues and taboo subjects.
The 37-year-old actress, whose last two films Chhorii (2021) and Dream Girl (2019), tackled the topics of female infanticide and loneliness, respectively, will be essaying the role of a condom salesperson in the upcoming Janhit Mein Jaari.
“The time has come today where we can have difficult conversations and I don’t think it is limited to cinema. Even in the office space, a woman can talk about having periods and taking a day off. There are more conversations that women can have in their lives and workplace,” Nushrratt told PTI in an interview.
The actor believes the performance of the upcoming Raaj Shaandilyaa production will define the degree of change in society.“Whether we can be successful at it is a big question. Cumulatively, the country will tell us whether they have accepted us with this normalcy or not. We will learn about it when our film releases,” she added.
Nushrratt said while she is unaware of the exact business women-led films have been doing at the box office, she is happy that her previous few choices cemented her position as a credible performer.“Post the release of Chhorii, I was offered three more movies led by women, this for me is a success. Because if more producers and directors are willing to put money in, it means they have earned some returns. The fact that the team is willing to make Chhorii gives me an indication that it was a success.”
Born and brought up in Mumbai, Nushrratt started her acting career with the TV show Kittie Party (2002) and forayed into Bollywood with Jai Santoshi Maa (2006). She then featured in Dibarkar Banerjee’s Love Sex Aur Dhokha (2010) but it was Luv Ranjan’s Pyaar Ka Punchnama franchise and Sonu Ke Titu Ki Sweety (2018) that catapulted her to fame.
In the last three years, she has worked on movies like Shaandilyaa’s Dream Girl, Hansal Mehta’s Chhalaang, the Netflix anthology Ajeeb Daastaans and the Vishal Furia-directed Chhorii.
Nushrratt said filmmakers have started taking her more seriously after these movies and she is now getting roles which are written specifically for her.
“Things have definitely changed. After Chhorii and Ajeeb Daastaans, filmmakers believe I can do these heavy roles. There are some producers who have said ‘we can only think of you’, which is great... It has a lot to do with the body of work.”
Janhit Mein Jaari traces the journey of a woman from a small town in Madhya Pradesh who faces challenges due to social taboos around condoms, as she fights back against her family and the neighbourhood. The film marks the feature directorial debut of Jai Basantu Singh.
The actor said Raaj shared the idea of Janhit Mein Jaari with her during the filming of Dream Girl and she was blown away by the concept.
“For me, it was a mind-blowing thought that the girl will get to be at the centre talking about a social message with a dash of humour,” she said.
Janhit Mein Jaari also features Anud Dhaka, Annu Kapoor and Paritosh Tripathi in pivotal roles.
Produced by Vinod Bhanushali under his banner Bhanushali Studios Limited and Think Ink Picturez in association with Shree Raghav Entertainment, the film is set for a theatrical release on June 10.
