In March, Angad Bedi was roped in opposite Sanya Malhotra for the Hindi adaptation of the acclaimed Malayalam film, 'The Great Indian Kitchen' (2021). The actor was to step into the shoes of Suraj Venjaramoodu to play a patriarchal husband who expects his wife to be submissive and confined to the kitchen. However, the latest on the remake’s front is that Bedi has exited the project due to date issues.

If things had gone as initially planned, the actor would have joined the second schedule of Arati Kadav’s directorial venture in January. “It is a great script, and Angad wanted to be a part of the film. He had started prepping for the role. But the dates clashed with those of his yet-untitled love story opposite Barkha Singh. Since he had already committed to the Jio Studios’ production, the actor decided to honour it and pulled out of the remake,” says a source.

While Bedi is shooting for the love story in Delhi, Kadav has locked a new face to keep 'The Great Indian Kitchen' remake’s shooting schedule on track. The Malayalam original, starring Nimisha Sajayan as a new bride, was widely praised for its feminist theme.

A departure from the heavy-duty roles in films like Gunjan Saxena: The Kargil Girl (2020) and Inside Edge (2017) and Pink (2016) leads Angad Bedi toward his first film as a lead opposite Barkha Singh. The duo is pairing up for an “intense love story” backed by Jio Studios, which recently produced the Varun Dhawan-led werewolf comedy, Bhediya.

“Angad and Barkha have already started shooting for the film in Delhi. It will be interesting to see their onscreen chemistry,” informs a source, adding, “The first schedule of the romantic drama is 45 days-long.”

The yet-untitled film helmed by Karan Darra, who previously directed the Gurmeet Choudhary-starrer Khamoshiyan (2015), features Bedi as a lawyer and Singh—of Maja Maa fame—as his intern in the law firm.

Only months after she played the rich brat in the second season of Masaba Masaba, Barkha Singh slips into the role of a millionaire’s daughter in Maja Ma. But one can be assured that the two roles are as different as chalk and cheese. Anand Tiwari’s directorial venture sees Singh’s character gear up for a big, fat wedding with her boyfriend, essayed by Ritwik Bhowmik. However, the shaadi is called off after a video featuring Pallavi, played by Madhuri Dixit-Nene, goes viral.

“It is a sensitive story told humorously,” says Singh of the Amazon Prime Video movie that also stars Gajraj Rao and Rajit Kapur. In narrating the journey of the devoted homemaker Pallavi, the director throws light on women’s quest for their identity.

“When we go out and work, we have an identity. But most homemakers in our country struggle to find themselves. The film [addresses] that in a non-preachy way. In the end, we let the audience decide whether it is wrong or right.”

If standing shoulder-to-shoulder with Dixit was a matter of pride for Singh, bringing Tiwari’s vision alive was sheer joy. She credits the director for etching each character with care. “He makes the effort to sit with his actors to develop their characters. He allows them their space, while also [nudging them] in the right direction,” she states.

Going forward, the actor, who has played a string of girl-next-door roles, hopes to bag some “dark, gruesome” characters. “I would also like to play a cop some day, mainly because it goes against my image,” she smiles.

Time stands still when it comes to Madhuri Dixit. Even today, she makes you go dhak-dhak each time she appears on the screen, her latest being, Maja Ma. Ahead of the premiere of the film on October 6 on Prime Video, the beautiful actress talks about what piqued her interest in the story, her desire to push the envelope with every project, and how the OTT boom has changed the game for actors. Excerpts…

The film is set in a colourful festive season with the quintessential Indian wedding as the backdrop. It’s a story of a perfectly imperfect family, centred around Pallavi Patel, who is a doting mother and a perfect wife. She is someone the community looks up to, but somewhere she begins to lose her identity as can be seen in the trailer. She says, ‘Main ek maa hoon, ek biwi hoon, lekin uske alaawa bhi mera wajood hai’. It’s a beautiful, warm, and funny film, but with a message told in a simple and non-preachy manner.

The entire cast bonded like a family on the first day itself and the love reflects in the film. Even though there were emotional scenes, we enjoyed each other’s company. There was a lot of appreciation for each other and Gajraj ji especially. He is also a director with a string of commercials to his credit. I remember once after I completed a scene, I was confused about whether I got it right. I wanted to ask Anand (the director), but he was busy on the phone. Gajraj ji saw my face, came up to me, and said, ‘Bohot achha tha’. So, his attention to detail is admirable and his comic timing is terrific. One look at his face and you want to laugh. It was so difficult to keep a straight face while enacting certain scenes with him. I literally had to sing a sad song in my head or else, I would have burst out laughing!

We also have these bright young actors (Ritwik Bhowmik, Barkha Singh and Srishti Shrivastava) who are so good. Of course, Anand (Tiwari, the director), who is also an actor, producer Amritpal Singh Bindra, and the Leo Media Collective team make everything on the set so easy and comfortable. It was a cohesive unit. We shot during COVID, but we made sure to protect each other.

It’s very important to talk about love and relationships with friends, your husband and your family without feeling uncomfortable. It’s important to keep an open dialogue because without that, it is difficult to maintain joy and relationships in family or in life. Communication is important for any relationship to thrive.

By taking up challenging roles and going with my gut. I played a different character in my first web series, which dropped earlier this year. It’s the same with Maja Ma. I have to challenge myself with every role I select. That’s what I am trying to do. When you take on something challenging, it keeps you on your toes and pushes you to walk that extra mile. I also love exploring different art forms other than acting and dancing. I tried singing because I love it. What’s important to me basically is to be serious about my craft, but have fun while I am at it as well.

Dance for me is like breathing. It’s a very spiritual thing. Even now, if I want to work out, I dance, so it’s an extremely important part of my life. It makes me feel happy and connected with the universe. Everybody should try dancing, it changes not only your body but mind, soul... everything! There is a lot of beauty in it and there is a lot of joy you get from it.

Absolutely. You have a series being carried by actresses at the centre of it. I would say that life imitates art and art imitates life. There are all kinds of people and not just youngsters who make up society and life. There are many age groups that have stories to be told and that’s what is happening on OTT. Brilliant actors, who were struggling to find their place in cinema, are getting to show their talent on the web because there is space for everyday people and relatable characters. That’s the one thing I find really great about OTT is that everyone is getting to showcase their talent, which is amazing.

Talent has always been important. Talent nahi hoga toh how can you even make it on screen? You had to be talented, but you had to be a star as well. If you think about it, cinema was the only source of entertainment at that time. We didn’t have so many channels and OTT platforms. Today, there are stars everywhere, be it on Instagram, Twitter, OTT, or TV. If you are a star today, you have to manage your social media as well. Back then, stars had to have a certain mysteriousness around them. But today, they want to know all about you. So, things have changed and you have to adapt to changing times.