The actor feels unnecessary panic can worsen the situation
Rishabh Suri (HINDUSTAN TIMES; March 31, 2020)

When she’s working, all her focus is consumed by it. And with a host of projects in hand, actor Radhika Apte is set to have a busy 2020 — a film with Nawazuddin Siddiqui, and more, besides making her directorial debut with the film Sleepwalkers. However, when not tied up with work, the 34-year-old usually heads to London, UK, where she’s stationed currently. “I live here too, I have a house. I prefer to be in London when I am not working,” she says.

The Coronavirus-19 pandemic has shut down most of the world, with India locked down till April 14.

Ask Apte what’s the situation like in London, where she is with her husband, musician Benedict Taylor, she shares, “It’s the same, completely locked down. People are panicking and supermarkets are quite empty. We are not in a food crisis, so it’s really a shame. A friend of mine told me from Goa (India) that there’s no food there. I think we need to be vigilant about it. If we start behaving like this, a lot of people will suffer. Nothing here is open apart from pharmacies and supermarkets. You are allowed to go and exercise, so I go for running.”

We further mention to Apte how the entertainment industry is going to be affected, with all film and TV/web show shoots put on hold due to the lockdown. She says more than that, it’s the daily wage and salaried workers we need to worry about currently.

“We are still in a far better condition, we are all in a business where most people have savings. It’s the majority of the Indian population we need to worry about. A lot of people, daily wagers, are losing their jobs. There’s only one message I want to give to people: donate, this is the time. It’s really not a lot one needs to donate and there are so many platforms. Also, please don’t hoard food, there’s no shortage. It’s damaging for others,” appeals Apte, also requesting people to “not sack people you can afford to keep — house helps, drivers.”

She might be relaxing now after working back-to-back, however juggling such a variety of projects must be quite hectic for Apte. “Not really,” pat comes the reply, “You do one thing at a time, all my work mentioned is done. Also, it isn’t as if I ‘finally’ ventured into direction, or anything. I was writing something, and felt like making it, it wasn’t a conscious decision that ‘Now I will direct’. Fortunately, we got the money to make it, I found good people to collaborate with. The shoot was a brief process.”