I don't regret my decision of doing small budget films: Richa Chadha on 'Masaan's' success at Cannes

New Delhi: In an industry where people guard their image like a treasure and prefer being politically correct, actress Richa Chadha is refreshingly different. Chadha’s tweet, post ‘Masaan’s’ win at the Cannes Film Festival, did raise chuckles and eyebrows amongst her peers and media alike.

‘Masaan’, in which Chadha stars, won FIPRESCI award at the recently concluded Cannes Film Festival as well as the Most Promising Newcomer award for its director Neeraj Ghaywan in the UnCertain Regard category. The two awards prompted Richa to post a picture of her middle finger on Twitter. “That was my reply to all the unnecessary advices that keep coming my way for doing small budget films," said Chadha in an exclusive interview to IBNLive.com

“So many people will tell you what to do, which films to work on, what image to maintain and it is annoying. I don’t regret my decision and I know what I am doing. If I didn’t have the guts, I wouldn’t have come to Mumbai for work. Only I know what I am capable of, what I should work on and that’s how it should be," says the actress who first came to limelight for her role in Dibakar Banerji’s ‘Oye Lucky, Lucky Oye’.

The actress, who was in Cannes for the screening of the film, said it was a hectic schedule but a fulfilling stay. “There was so much work to do this time. We interacted with other people whose films were also part of the UnCertain Regard section. Had to attend formal dinners, interact with media and make appearances- so it was hectic but a fun stay," said the actress. This was Chadha’s second time at the festival, first being in 2012 for ‘Gangs Of Wasseypur’. Was she more at ease the second time round? “During ‘Gangs…’, there was too little time. Besides, it is a different experience when your film is selected in a category, so this time round there were a lot more activities around the film’s promotion."

While the film festival is known for recognizing good cinema, the focus in the last decade or so has shifted a lot on fashion. Actress Sonam Kapoor and Aishwarya Rai Bachchan have become regular faces at the festival and international fashion icons. Many have expressed that how these actresses should also promote Indian films that are showcased at the festival. “But why should they?" asks Chadha and adds, “They are there for a job; they are representing a brand which is one of the main sponsors of the festival. Besides, I did see an interview of Sonam where she said that how more Indian commercial films should be showcased at the festival. She may not have directly spoken about ‘Masaan’ and ‘Chauthi Koot’ but that’s okay. There are just there, doing their job. And Cannes is known for its fashion as well. You can’t deny that."

Speaking about her character in ‘Masaan’, Chadha said, “My character Devi goes through something drastic in the first fifteen minutes of the film. She is guilty of the incident yet remorseless. The characters in the film are all based in Benaras, where they are grappling with traditions and trying to break through and imbibe modernity."

For someone who has done films like ‘Fukrey’, ‘Gangs Of Wasseypur’, ‘Goliyon Ki Rasleela RamLeela’, the actress says that it is the film industry and not the audience that demarcates films into categories. “Lines are blurring with time but those lines exist in the mind of the industry people and not the audience. Hats off to actresses like Deepika Padukone who does a ‘Piku’ after a ‘Happy New Year’ and a ‘Finding Fannny’ after ‘Ram Leela’. In fact so many actresses are trying to balance the two worlds now and doing it so well." Chadha feels more filmmakers are now coming up to offer her typical Bollywood projects. “I hope ‘Masaan’ changes people’s attitude- that I am capable of doing different kind of films. I am doing Pooja Bhatt’s next ‘Cabarett’ which will have me playing a girl who loves dance. Which is a completely different role."

Post ‘Masaan’, which will release in theaters in India on July 24th, Richa will start shooting for ‘Cabarett’. She also has ‘Main aur Charles’, ‘Devdas’ and ‘Jia and Jia’ ready for release this year.

Before signing off, we ask her how does she choose her films, “I choose directors. Though there have been occasion when the directors chose me. But I have learnt the importance of working with right banners now. There have been instances in the past that my film has not been promoted well by a particular banner and has failed at the Box Office or even get noticed. So it is important to work with the right banner," said the actress.