Shweta Tripathi Sharma is inherently drawn to “tougher, edgier, and morally hazy roles.” Kaalkoot ticked the first box, giving her a powerful role. Couple that with the opportunity to work with director Sumit Saxena, and it was an instant yes from the actor.

“When I choose any project, the material, character, and story are of the utmost importance, but it is also important to know who the makers are. If you have a great script in the wrong hands, it isn’t [going to bear fruit]. I trusted Sumit’s vision because I had worked with him before on a short film,” says Tripathi.

The Jio Cinema series sees Tripathi play an acid attack survivor, while Vijay Varma essays an earnest cop who puts his might behind solving an acid attack case. As part of her research, she met a few acid attack survivors. While she struggled to keep her tears in check while listening to their stories, she drew from their strength.

“They were laughing, giggling, sharing stories, and telling me about their lives. Hats off to them because when something like this happens, you are changing not only their face or skin; you are changing who they are, their dreams, and who they want to be. No one has the right to change somebody’s life.”

Even as the crime thriller is centred on acid attacks, writers Saxena and Arunabh Kumar have gone beyond the subject to show how society sets unrealistic beauty standards and promotes toxic masculinity.

Emphasizing that validation comes from within, the leading lady says, “We live in a world of capitalism and consumerism, and the concept of beauty that we sell bothers me. Also, Ravi [Varma’s character] is often told that in order to be a good cop, he needs to project masculinity. This story also delves deeper into the reasons why men are the way they are in our society. They manufacture a certain idea of masculinity, a certain beauty standard, and [create a flawed ideal of] how a woman should be.”