The current national obsession, actor Radhika Apte, talks fame and why every day is about survival in this industry
Aastha Atray Banan (MID-DAY; September 9, 2018)

If you haven’t been living under a rock recently, you couldn’t have missed all the Netflix-Radhika Apte memes, which even prompted the online entertainment service to change their Instagram bio to “Just another @ radhikaapte fan account”. Apte, who turned 33 last week, has featured in three Netflix originals this year — Anurag Kashyap’s short in Lust Stories, Sacred Games and most recently, the horror series, Ghoul, where she plays a feisty yet loyal government official, who turns rogue when she realises the truth about Big Brother. “That was just a joke. Lust Stories and Ghoul weren’t supposed to release on Netflix. It just worked out like that,” Apte tells us over the phone as she heads to the airport, where she is catching a flight to Canada for the Toronto International Film Festival for the premiere of her Michael Winterbottom film with Dev Patel, The Wedding Guest.

But ask about the online portal’s affect on her career and she says she is just glad it exists. “The reach is great, and the projects are different. It’s just employment of all kinds on all levels. It’s really a no-brainer to be on it.”

After watching Apte’s meteoric rise in the past year, those who have refused web series for mainstream movies, are perhaps regretting their decision. The Pune-bred actress, who we first noticed in movies like Shor In The City (2011) and Parched (2016) and then in shorts like Ahalya ( 2015) and the TV series Choker Bali (2015), really hit the big time after Pad Man released earlier this year. It’s truly her knack of being in the right place at the right time that could be credited for her being omnipresent now. “Well, only time will tell if it lasts. But yes, I took whatever was offered and made some right decisions. I only thought about the role I was playing, and really didn’t think what platform it would be appearing on,” says the former Kathak dancer.

Ask her what brings the confidence to say yes to projects that could be termed risky, and she says she never had such qualms. “Fear is imposed by society. If we start pandering to it, that won’t work. I don’t give attention to such external factors. If I get a good indie project, I take it. If I get a big commercial blockbuster, I will take that too.”

Apte has also managed to carve a niche for herself that lies somewhere between commercial actors like Deepika Padukone and art house actors like Nandita Das. Her unconventional looks may have to do with that as well. But ask her about her notion of beauty and her answer is as logical and practical as the roles she has been playing recently. “I think looks don’t come into the picture if your character connects with the audience. These are superficial things that cease to matter when you are being authentic, when people are empathising with the person you portray,” she says.

For now, she is waiting for her movies — AndhaDhun with Ayushmann Khurrana, and Baazaar with Saif Ali Khan — to release. “AndhaDhun may seem like a simple love story, but you will be shocked at how twisted a tale it is. Baazaar is as commercial as it gets.”

If she is worried about sustaining her winning streak, she doesn’t show any signs of it. “It’s an industry where there is insecurity on a daily basis. It all depends on what you are doing next. But with freelance work like acting, there always comes insecurity. And with secure jobs like working at an office, comes boredom. So, it’s all about survival. And all I can say is that I am just starting out. I have many years to go.”