Read the full story here: https://gulfnews.com/entertainment/bollywood/meet-the-fierce-women-from-mirzapur-who-stole-the-show-1.1720003383921
See more videos at https://gulfnews.com/videos
Read more Gulf News stories here: https://bit.ly/2HLJ2km
See more videos at https://gulfnews.com/videos
Read more Gulf News stories here: https://bit.ly/2HLJ2km
Category
🗞
NewsTranscript
00:00I think our conditioning has happened in such a way that we, as women, we forget to question.
00:09There are so many rituals and customs that happen till date and when I ask the people
00:15that why do we do this, people don't know.
00:19People just blindly follow because it was said, because it was told.
00:23I think us as characters and even as actors, we question that and I would like to believe
00:31that is why a change is happening in the system and this change is not just on screen.
00:37It is in, might be, be it now IS officers or be it the CEOs, that power equation is
00:44changing because when the change happens, then there are waves that are felt throughout.
00:48So I'm very proud of this sisterhood which is right here and which is, you know, happening
00:56in small and huge waves across the globe.
01:02Thank you so much for speaking to Gulf News.
01:04All you feisty women of Mirzapur, I know it's a testosterone show, but I love the women.
01:11I think women make this show tick.
01:13You guys are the power brokers and crazy manipulators, might I add.
01:18So that's what kind of like drew you.
01:20I mean, I think it's one of the series that evolved.
01:22The first season, I wasn't very impressed by the women.
01:25Second and third, I'm sure it gets better, right?
01:28So perhaps, Rasika, you can go with it.
01:30You shocked me in many ways.
01:34I think I shocked myself too and I think they shocked me by casting me in this part.
01:39I was quite convinced that I'd go for one rehearsal and they'll say, no, no, we've changed
01:42our mind.
01:43We want to cast somebody else.
01:45So I was very grateful for this out-of-the-box thinking.
01:49I've totally enjoyed playing Bina Tripathi in season one as well, because I really feel
01:54like those were the times before she gets into a sort of revenge-driven scenario in
02:02season two.
02:03But season one was really about her, you know, exploring her sexuality and just being the
02:11woman that she wants to be.
02:13And really finding ways to navigate this very, like you said, testosterone-driven house.
02:21So I was very joyfully playing her in season one.
02:27And of course, season two has all the dumb of her revenge, all the force of revenge,
02:33which culminates into her taking revenge for the way she was violated and humiliated by
02:39her father-in-law in season one.
02:41Very nice.
02:42Very nice.
02:43I like that.
02:44Women in charge.
02:45You have an angelic face.
02:46And therefore, whenever you even wielded weapons, we kind of like, we were still rooting for
02:50you at all points.
02:51I think that's a good one that you should be proud of.
02:55A pat on the back.
02:56Angelic face, but sinister intent.
02:59They often come together, you know.
03:04I've noticed.
03:07What about you ladies, Shweta, go for it and Harshita, yeah.
03:15It was all in the writing.
03:16So when I started reading the first episode of season one, I fell in love with the characters
03:22and the world that was created.
03:24And I knew that I want to be a part of this world because any character, event, situation
03:29that is written by this team will do justice to everybody.
03:34Yes, I agree with you that the way women were shown, the way women were treated, and that
03:44thankfully has evolved and that is with our world as well.
03:48I think our conditioning has happened in such a way that we as women, we forget to question.
03:57There are so many rituals and customs that happen till date.
04:03And when I ask the people that why do we do this, people don't know.
04:07People just blindly follow because it was said, because it was told.
04:12I think us as characters and even as actors, we question that.
04:18And I would like to believe that is why a change is happening in the system.
04:23And this change is not just on screen.
04:25It is in, might be, be it now IAS officers or be it the CEOs, that our equation is changing
04:32because when the change happens, then there are waves that are felt throughout.
04:37So I'm very proud of this sisterhood which is right here and which is, you know, happening
04:44in small and huge waves across the globe.
04:49And that makes me very happy because when one of us wins, then all of us win.
04:55You guys are the Mirzapur's angels.
04:57Somebody's been calling us the Lomdi gang for some reason.
05:05We'll take that as well.
05:09Okay, wow.
05:10That's very rustic.
05:11I like that.
05:12It keeps with the tone of the show where it's set.
05:14Yes.
05:15I think that will be.
05:16Harshita, what about you?
05:17Yeah.
05:18So I think Kudos to writing, you said, obviously with the seasons, the women characters have
05:23also grown and evolved and it's beautiful how the strength has come in different ways
05:30through different women, whether it's Golu, whether it's Bina, whether it's Dimpy, whether
05:36it's any woman character and whether it's like Rassika's whole turmoil in the family
05:41where Golu choosing violence, Dimpy not choosing violence and still showing strength.
05:45So I think the strength has come in different ways, which is really beautiful writing.
05:52And they all stick to their choices and they all are so strong in their own ways.
05:58I think Kudos to the Lomdi gang.
06:01Lomdi gang for the win.
06:03I love it.
06:04I think we have to put it on our t-shirts and walk around for sure.
06:07That's a great idea.
06:09Great.
06:10And Vemin, do you think while you were reading the script, it's written by men, at any point
06:14did you feel that a woman's voice was missing or is gender not a factor when it comes to
06:21dialogues or perhaps script?
06:24This question is for all of us?
06:26Yes, go for it.
06:29Who would you?
06:30Rassika, go for it.
06:31I don't believe that.
06:34And I do believe that we need to have representation off camera also for women, but I have been
06:40in my experience, very pleasantly surprised by some of the sensitivity that many men around
06:46me have shown.
06:47I mean, Delhi Crime is directed by a man, written and directed.
06:50Season 1 was written and directed by a man and I thought it was just very, very sensitively
06:55done.
06:56Also, I think Puneet is really, Puneet Krishna, the writer of Season 1 of Mirzapur, I thought
07:00I had understood this woman very well.
07:03You know, he was, I mean, you have this side where she's exploring her sexuality, she's
07:08doing what she wants to do, basically.
07:11But there is a side where you see that she's being punished for that, right, which is at
07:17the end of Season 1, which is actually a very… and the show is not condoning that
07:22in any way.
07:23The show is not making that acceptable in any way, because that, I think, would have
07:27been problematic.
07:28But I thought he'd really written this woman so deliciously and deviously, you know.
07:33People tend to sort of ascribe a lot of compassion and a lot of moral uprightness to women.
07:43I don't know why, you know.
07:45It's as if, as if the entire responsibility of compassion is on women and that I don't
07:53think is true.
07:54Women are fun.
07:55They can be devious.
07:56They can be wearing their sexuality on their sleeve.
07:58They can be all of that.
07:59And he had written in all of that.
08:01And I was actually very moved by the way he'd written some of the women characters in the
08:06show.
08:07And I agree that's…
08:08You are vulnerable.
08:09Correct.
08:10Absolutely right.
08:12And there is that vulnerability at every stage.
08:15You see that side.
08:16And I think that's true of any well-written material, you know.
08:19You will see a vulnerable side to every character.
08:22You will somewhere have the opportunity, if you wish to, to empathize with them or sort
08:27of be in their shoes for a moment.
08:29Sorry, you were saying something.
08:31That as women as well, it's okay to have desires.
08:35And that desire might be for power, for the throne, or maybe just using the person as
08:41a puppet, or for a physical desire as well.
08:44It's all right.
08:45But like Razika said, that somehow, our moral policing, or you know, what we have to choose
08:52between white and black, it's women who've been like, if you're a mother or a sister,
08:58then you're supposed to be a certain way.
09:00Like, you know, the good girl behavior, which is a lot of fun to break.
09:05And because I think our men in the show, who made the show, are literally true feminists.
09:11So the fact that, that equality that Razika was talking about, the entire responsibility
09:17of compassion is on a woman.
09:19So I think they've really understood how to have women and men playing the parts to be
09:25equal in terms of their emotions, their desires, coming through the characters, which is, again,
09:31brilliant writing.
09:32So I think they've really balanced it out.
09:35Right, of course.
09:36And if you look past the meaningless violence, some may say, of course, there's also characters
09:42who live in the gray.
09:43There's no black and white in this show.
09:45I mean, I really don't know whether to like them, dislike them, even women.
09:50I mean, you guys are not very likable.
09:54I say that with great pride.
09:56I mean, you guys should be complex, right?
09:58It shouldn't be like, it's such a departure from the usual Hindi, you know, heroines that
10:04we look at.
10:05Either they're like in white kurtas, virginal, nothing on those lines.
10:09Do you think that is what inhabiting the grays is what drew you to this series as well, apart
10:14from the guns and the gore, of course, and the lads?
10:17But aren't we all gray, like in real life also?
10:19I feel like, I mean, we can have shades, we can towards black or towards white, but I
10:23think all of us are gray, so playing that is also...
10:28I think, yeah, we are pink, we are white and black, we are green, we are everything.
10:32And now finally it's time to accept that and to see that as well.
10:37We are reading different kind of books and we are not doing, hiding and doing that.
10:41So I think it's important to stand up for things because all of us have that power.
10:47We also have, we all are a Kanya, a Veera, a Maa, a Rishika.
10:53We all have those archetypes within us.
10:56It is now depending on situation to situation or an event or a person that you just need
11:01to dial up or dial down, but that control should be with you and not with anybody else.
11:08I think what I was really, really drawn to is something that I'm very drawn to in life
11:11also, which is watching these women very surreptitiously navigate a patriarchal world.
11:18You know, sometimes there are some women who stand out against it and speak up against
11:22it and all of that.
11:24And there are some women who just quietly sort of find their way around this.
11:29And I've seen several women do that and I think a lot of women I grew up with, I think
11:32never had an articulation for their feminism, but they had a desire to not follow the norm
11:41and they didn't, you know.
11:42They probably didn't make a statement about it because they didn't probably have access
11:48to that kind of vocabulary or sort of understanding themselves at that time or sort of even having
11:55a community who would sort of support and encourage that.
11:58But they always found their way, cleverly, intelligently, quietly they navigated this
12:04patriarchal world and got what they wanted and that I've always found very interesting.
12:09I mean, I wish we didn't have to do that.
12:10I wish we could just live and we didn't have to navigate it and negotiate it and all of
12:13that.
12:14But it's also so interesting to see what all women did to do that.
12:17You know, I used to know this girl who, a friend's sister who lived in Lucknow and I
12:21thought that, you know, I've lived in hostels and I live in Bombay and I am far more liberated
12:28than she is.
12:29And I was completely wrong.
12:30She had this boyfriend and she would make excuses with her parents and go and have a
12:34good time with him more often than anybody knew, you know, I was just so impressed with
12:40that kind.
12:41She'd sort of find a way to do it.
12:43So they can navigate it more, like you said, surreptitiously or in a more, what is the
12:48word, devious manner.
12:49They are quite devious, right?
12:50Even Bina Tripathi, for all you know, she's quite devious.
12:53She's completely devious.
12:55Yes, I mean, seriously, all the men she has, at some point she does control them, right?
13:01And not in the most obvious way.
13:03She plays them completely to her advantage.
13:06She's like a dictionary in deviousness, honestly.
13:08We should have a Bina Tripathi's guide to like...
13:14That's a great idea, actually.
13:16Yeah.
13:17Fifty Shades of Bina.
13:18A rulebook by Bina Tripathi.
13:19That is brilliant.
13:20I would buy it.
13:21I would buy it too.
13:22No, no.
13:23I think all women need it.
13:24Is it really good?
13:25Like, is there like a cleansing thing that happens after you guys, you know, film for
13:26Mirzapur?
13:27Because I was just thinking, I watch it and I'm like, I have kids and I'm like, oh, swearing
13:28is so done.
13:29Like, I know your cuss words.
13:30Thank you very much.
13:31You know, so what do you guys do?
13:32Like to, you know, is there something, some cathartic process that you three women face?
13:33No more guns.
13:34No more guns.
13:35No more guns.
13:36No more guns.
13:37No more guns.
13:38No more guns.
13:39No more guns.
13:40No more guns.
13:41No more guns.
13:42No more guns.
13:43No more guns.
13:44No more guns.
13:45No more guns.
13:46No more guns.
13:47No more guns.
13:48Is there something, some cathartic process that you three women face?
13:50No more guns.
13:51Let's talk in good language.
13:54No more like, you know, no potty mouth more.
13:57Those lines, is that a process?
14:00Actually, I don't think we as women in the show, I don't think we are abusing much.
14:06Ok.
14:07So that's okay by people who are potty mouthed.
14:09True.
14:10more than that for me the cleansing that I need to do and that I do is listening
14:15to a different playlist because my Golu playlist is full of type of music and
14:22songs which really puts me in that state of mind so it's very important for me
14:28that after I'm done with shoot I listen to it's the time to disco because I need
14:33to get out of that frame of mind it's very important for me to wear my
14:37accessories which I love because when I'm shooting for Mirzapur and I'm being
14:41Golu I just dress up like her as well that I wear my denims and a shirt and
14:47that's about it but I think it's very important to not lose sight of that line
14:52where you are doing kabaddi kabaddi kabaddi with your character and you so but
14:57these are the learnings that we have with time and with different projects so
15:01now I just try to be more careful I try to be as goofy and be in my Disney world
15:06because that is the real me and but Golu definitely psychologically takes a toll
15:13because of what her journey has been yeah she's disturbed she's troubled as
15:18well there's no doubt about it. Jessica perhaps you could tell me like do you
15:21have a process like how do you and you know not become Veena Tripathi, how do you
15:26step out of that zone? I mean I would love to be Veena Tripathi in life, honestly.
15:32Every human being is like yeah I could be Veena Tripathi in us. It's a little difficult to tell honestly with
15:38every part there is no space where I'm conscious of the fact that oh I'm there
15:45the the shooting process is full of you know oh I hope I am there for me you
15:50know because I'm always feeling like I have to be at a certain place and I'm
15:53always feeling like I'm falling short of that and I need to be more involved in
15:57this and I could do something which was more like more interesting for the
16:00moment or or more true for the moment or to make something magical for the
16:05moment so I'm so preoccupied with all of that that I am not conscious of the fact
16:09what is what is me what is what is Veena what is happening in between where we
16:16met each other where we didn't and all of that it's all a little bit subliminal
16:20and a little subconscious which is the beauty of it therefore coming out of it
16:24is not something that I'm conscious of either you know I'm sure there's
16:28something that I carry there's nothing that I that is physically so distinct
16:34that I can I notice it but I do remember feeling sexier in season than I did
16:41otherwise in life. You have that seductive air about you. Yeah and I think generally playing her
16:48is it has been good for my body image of myself. We are with you, the perfect body
16:57community, we are with you. How about you Harshita? Like you are relatively. Yeah fortunately or
17:05unfortunately I've never had to like go away from my character or leave that
17:09behind because I actually take a lot of strength from my character in me for my
17:13real life so I have tried to held on to it for a much longer time so that I can
17:19be like her in terms of decision-making because she's very decisive and so yeah
17:26maybe things might change in the subsequent seasons to come where I'll
17:30also have to be like okay. If you survive. If I survive. You never know if you guys will be around for long. You have no idea. Maybe one of us dies also. Don't say that. I hope you all survive somehow with injuries or you know in a wheelchair you are there still.
17:51More importantly you know this series has taken, the success of the series has taken everybody by surprise. It's lasted three seasons, not easy. I mean Grey's Anatomy, there's 20 seasons of it. I think Mirzapur has caught on. I mean people criticize it for the senseless violence. There's a lot of gun. Are we glorifying violence? We have all of that chatter as well. But then there's the plot which is like riveting. I mean the power play and just you know obnoxious men fighting for power and women as well in the mix.
18:21So what do you think is the lasting appeal behind it? Why do you think it's so popular?
18:28I think that it's a very interesting mix between snazziness, quirkiness and really putting it out there and combined with really solid writing work with your characters because otherwise it would not remain in people's hearts and heads for as long as it has if you were not sort of being with the characters in some way or the other.
18:51Whether you were liking them, whether you were liking to dislike them, whether you were loving them or not you know. So I think that is the strength for the show and that was for me I think the most interesting thing about it when I read it. I said there's a lot of fun in this but there is some solid work with these characters you know. They're just so well written and they're so well understood by the writer.
19:12Of course. How about you two?
19:14I think we…
19:16Go for it.
19:18I feel like because when Mirzapur 1 came and you know it was just so, it blew so much. I feel what might have really worked was the fact that what happens with the Pandas family or even Golu and Sweety and stuff is very relatable because it can happen you know in the next door.
19:42It's a simple family whereas I think that Tripathi's also because it's little less relatable when you see for the first time but when you see like two men, two boys just becoming and entering that world that probably and somebody coming home and things going haywire can happen anywhere.
20:00So I think that was probably the starting point of people connecting with it in a very weird way and then of course the writing and in terms of how the characters play out in the subsequent seasons is what has kept people hooked on to it for six years now.
20:19How about you Swetha?
20:22I think because of the response that we keep getting from fans and from the media as well, I think one thing that has really 100% is the writing and the characters.
20:36We admire the West a lot and follow great content that is made over there. Also trends. I think what really works for Mirzapur is the desi flavour.
20:48It has everything. I really say it's a family show for definitely 18 plus because there is so many...
20:56Which part of 18 plus?
20:5818 plus because it is about loving your family or not.
21:02Family of adults.
21:04Because while we just did a re-watch of season 1 and 2 and there are so many lessons that you learn from all of the characters. You don't know what they are up to. You can't predict what they are going to do.
21:18You think they will do this but they do that. So I think you get to see a lot of flavour within the show and within the characters.
21:26And you are rooting for them and like you said that you don't know whether you like them. There is a person who is doing all the wrong things but you don't want any bad to happen to that person.
21:36And there might be a person who is doing the right thing. And you are like...
21:40So it's a mixed bag of just beautiful people. Some in search for love and some in search for power and some in search of eggs.
21:53Last question. Just tell me whether you all question the motives of your character at any point and how did you navigate that bump?
22:03I think that it's an interesting challenge every time that happens. If you are not wired like the character you are playing, it's a very beautiful exercise for a performer.
22:17And when I read Veena, I was like, I don't know anything. I have to really figure out how this person is functioning. And that is so interesting to do.
22:27But once when you start working on a performance, you realise how many different people live within you and you just don't practice that side of...
22:35Some sides of yourself you don't practice enough. And therefore they might seem strange to you in the beginning.
22:42But once you're there, you're like, yeah, I could have been that also. If I had chosen to be like this and I can still choose to be like this.
22:50This is not so strange. This is another human being. And there is a little bit of that in me also. So that's how you navigate the bump.
22:58And I mean, if you lived life enough or even if you haven't, if you have an imagination which is good enough, you can get there very easily.
23:05The more work I do, the more I believe that, you know.
23:08Nice, nice. I love it. We are team Veena.
23:11Yes, Shweta and Harshita, yes.
23:14I think the motives keep changing with these characters. I mean, OK, especially with Golu's character.
23:21Because you don't know if you'll be alive tomorrow or not.
23:24For you it's survival, yeah.
23:28So that is the thing that the first thing is to survive. And then it is that what do you do when you survive?
23:34So motives are definitely very important. But I think for Golu and the headspace she is in, you are just planning your next step and hoping to nail it.
23:47You have definitely. What about you, Harshita?
23:50As an actor, I have definitely questioned the character's motives and then gotten down to all the answers by discussing it with my director and the writer.
23:59And then being non-judgmental about it because then you have to just like, you have to be that person.
24:05So you can't judge it. You can't judge your character at all.
24:08So yeah, but definitely before that, I need all my questions to be answered.
24:15Actually, I was just thinking there's a dialogue there where Bina has told you should always be at the bottom and not on top.
24:22You guys have shown that women can be on top and they rule.
24:27So thank you so much for entertaining us. It's been a pleasure watching you women shine in a very male-led patriarchal world that's in Mirzapur.
24:38Breaking stereotypes one day at a time.
24:40One day at a time, one good role at a time. Thank you so much.
24:43Thank you, Anushka.