Nushrat Bharucha: I am drawn to stories not stars

Nushrat Bharucha, Rajkummar Rao and Ayushmann Khurrana

Asked about the subject that her next, Dream Girl, would dabble in, Nushrat Bharucha indulges us in a play of words. She's eager to know what we believe could be the film's subject, and pat comes our response - the story of a desi drag queen.

Bharucha is amused. We manage to tickle her funny bone, just not enough for her to crack. "There's absolutely nothing that I can tell you about the film," she says simply, quick to add, "All I can say is that it is exhausting, but worth it all."

Speculations on Bharucha playing the titular role were put to rest when her co-star Ayushmann Khurrana took to Instagram to state that he would feature "in and as" Dream Girl. It is evident in our conversation with her that she's enjoying filming with the actor, who she wasn't acquainted with before they began to roll. "The process of getting to know a person can also be suitable in building a good chemistry. In the past, I have always known the actors I've collaborated with, be it Kartik [Aaryan] or Rajkummar [Rao]. That wasn't the case with Ayushmann. While working together, we discovered a novelty to our equation," says Bharucha.

The duo, she says, find many a meeting ground. "We bond over shayaris and music. We often chat between our shots. While shooting for a romantic song, we were told to merely talk to each other. The makers have captured a wonderful montage of us having a regular conversation."

Juggling the shoot of Ekta Kapoor's offering with another film, Bharucha turns up on the Mathura set in the evenings, following a three-hour drive from Delhi. Spending her mornings in the capital, she faces the camera for Turram Khan, which pairs her with the critically-acclaimed Rao.

With actors like him and Khurrana - who emerged as one among 2018's most bankable actors, given his consecutive hits, AndhaDhun and Badhaai Ho - to count as co-stars, Bharucha, it could be argued, could be making a transition into the A-league. But, she doesn't look at the associations as ones that stemmed from the actors' box-office victories. "I was drawn to the stories and greenlit them before [Rao-starrer] Stree and AndhaDhun became hits. I wanted to work with great actors; they became stars later."

Also Read: Ayushmann Khurrana: I am audience made star

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