Jaspreet Nijher (BOMBAY TIMES; June 29, 2019)

Zareen Khan, who was last seen in the horror film, 1921, talks to BT about playing a homosexual in an underproduction Hindi film, venturing into Punjabi cinema, bodyshaming and why trolls don’t affect her anymore.

While many Punjabi actors are shifting to Bollywood, female actresses from the Hindi film industry are venturing into the Punjabi industry…
For the men, the transition has just started happening, while actresses have been acting in Punjabi films since long. I think the only thing that can hold regional actors back is that they have a fan following already in their own industry, which they can lose if they make the switch, unless it’s a Gippy Grewal or a Diljit Dosanjh. These guys are not just actors, but singers, too. So, for them, making the switch was easy. Some like Diljit did not make the switch (to Bollywood) by compromising on their roots. He didn’t play just another party animal in Hindi films. He kept his turban on for all his roles and still managed to blend with Bollywood, beautifully. Not a lot of people can do that.

You are back again to Punjabi films after six years…
I don’t think ‘back again’ are the right words here, because it’s not that I didn’t want to do Punjabi films. I just didn’t get any interesting offers. Whether it is Punjabi or south cinema, I am keen on doing good work. But, I feel specially for Punjabi cinema, because I love the way Punjabis work. The ambience of the shoot is such that even when you are working, it doesn’t feel like work. It’s a lot of fun and the whole shoot goes by in the blink of an eye.

What is your Hindi film, Hum Bhi Akele Tum Bhi Akele, about?
It is an interesting story of a homosexual woman, a lesbian, and a gay man (played by Anshuman Jha). Whenever the word homosexual comes up, people start thinking of many weird things, but this film is none of that and shows no vulgarity. It is a beautiful story of friendship between these individuals. People carry different perceptions about gay people and this film will really break through that.

Is the film trying to merge the LGBTQ community into mainstream?
The community already accepts us for whatever we are. It’s we who see them as outsiders. For me, to accept this role was about playing a character that means something to me, and helps me grow, rather than an eye candy, running around trees. In our film industry, we live in a time where everyone is comfortable about their sexuality. I didn’t need to study one special person to learn lesbian behaviour. Yes, my character required me to put on weight. I play a girl who is a foodie, so she can’t look like a diva with toned arms and flat abs.

Does gaining weight put you back with body-shaming trolls?
Ugh! That has been a part of my life since the beginning when I had to pack on eight kilos for my first film. Now, I don’t even care about trolls, the sensible people will accept me. As an actor, you can’t look like a ramp model if you are playing a regular girl.