Ira Dubey: We were stuck together due to bio-bubble

A still from the series

How did the cast of Potluck create that easy camaraderie seen on screen? "Bio-bubble," laughs Ira Dubey, whose act in the family comedy has won her a nomination in the Best Supporting Actor (Female): Series category at the third season of mid-day and Radio City Hitlist OTT Awards. "The most striking aspect of the show is the chemistry between the cast. Because we shot in a bio-bubble in Delhi, we were stuck together - eating, drinking, hanging around the pool or in one another's room at all times. It was a good tactic employed by the makers, because we literally became a family," she says. Dubey adds that the cast - including Jatin Sial, Kitu Gidwani and Cyrus Sahukar - fed off each other's energies at the first script-reading session, making her believe that their bond would reflect on screen.

As Akanksha, she plays a working mom attempting to strike a work-life balance. The role instantly appealed to Dubey since it's "a real predicament for women today". While she initially lamented that her character was "not the funny one", she realised Akanksha is the emotional thread holding the family together. "That I had Cyrus as my husband was [a bonus]. He is the funniest man I've met. Given that we were stuck with the kids, a lot of the comedy was also situational. The show reflected [the current generation] appropriately. We want to live our own lives. But if the family calls, no matter where we are, we will be there. Potluck reflected that -- what happens when people with these different energies come together at a table."

For Dubey, one of the highlights was working with child actor Aradhya Anjana, who played her daughter in the show. "Working with kids is difficult, yet joyful. She is a wonderful and spontaneous actor."

Cast your vote for the Hitlist OTT Awards

Ira Dubey has been nominated in the Best Supporting Actor (Female): Series category for Potluck. The other nominees are:
>> Amruta Subhash (Bombay Begums)
>> Ashlesha Thakur (The Family Man S02)
>> Geetanjali Kulkarni (Gullak S02)
>> Kani Kusruti (OK Computer)
>> Konkona Sensharma (Mumbai Diaries 26/11)
>> Shabana Azmi (The Empire)
>> Supriya Pathak (Tabbar)

Log on to www.radiocity.in/hitlistawards to cast your vote.

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Voting lines close on March 18.