Tabu is no stranger to getting good reviews for her on-screen performances. But she was left pleasantly surprised when the same happened for Bhool Bhulaiyaa 2. The reason? It was the first time she attempted a double role as well as a genre she hasn’t experimented with before — horror comedy. “I wasn’t expecting this at all. This was different for me in every possible way. I have never done something like this before. The day Anees bhai (Bazmee, director) called me and offered the movie to me, I was too excited,” laughs Tabu.

The actor adds that people always associate her with films such as Haider (2014) and Andhadhun (2018), but it wasn’t as if she was waiting for a role like this: “You aren’t sitting and expecting things to come [to you on their own]. I can watch Anees bhai’s films, like Welcome (2007) and Singh Is Kinng (2008), any number of times as they are a laugh riot. I would always think, ‘Why am I not working with him?’ And then this happened.”

But this project didn’t come without any hurdles. Tabu shares, “This film took a lot of time to complete because Coroanavirus became an obstacle. We went to far-off locations, and it was only late last year that we shot 90% of the film.”

Lastly, ask the 51-year-old if videos of fans hooting and cheering in theatres, especially on her entry as the evil spirit, surprised her at all, and she laughs. Probe her if that made her feel special, because conventionally, all this is reserved for the male actors, and the National Award winner smiles, “I didn’t think of it in that manner. I just thought ki character ke liye log seeti maar rahein hain. It was incidental that it was a woman. But this was good.”