Dhaval Roy (DNA; November 10, 2017)

Prachi Desai may not have played a musician in Rock On! but in her next outing, Kosha, she plays a vocalist and rhythm guitarist in a blues band. And, to get the characterisation perfect, the Once Upon a Time in Mumbaai actress has picked up the guitar in real life, too. Prachi says, “I wanted it to feel real; I wanted to truly lose myself in the music much like my character does in the film. It’s no use if you’re performing and are worried about syncing your movement to the song.”

And thus began her guitar lessons from none other than the director of her film, Amman Advaita, who, Prachi tells us, is a nifty guitarist himself. So, right from the pre-production days, Prachi started practising the six-string with the filmmaker. Once they commenced the shoot, “A bunch of us would sit back in the morning after a hard night’s shoot, jam and have fun, so much so that it became a problem waking up the next day,” the actress smiles.

Strumming on
Though Prachi used to strum for a few hours each day earlier, her busy schedule has meant that the practice sessions are infrequent now. She informs us that she has learnt to play the song that she performs in the movie and a few other favourites. So, does she plan to continue playing after the film is wrapped up? “Yes! Playing the guitar has been quite liberating. I want to keep learning the instrument and hopefully master it someday,” says the actress who found Kristen Stewart as Joan Jett in the film Runaways inspiring when she was younger.

All for the role
Before this, to do justice to the role, Prachi had injured her hand while shooting for a scene. “Actually, I was supposed to be punching a bag that was kept for my protection but I punched it away and started to punch the ground. Nobody noticed and I didn’t want to stop. I had so much to gain that the pain wasn’t a problem,” she says. Holds true for her guitar practice, too, since like any beginner, Prachi has also had sore fingers after playing. “They still get sore but it was needed and completely worth it. You’ll soon see,” Prachi offers. Incidentally, it was Abhishek Kapoor’s Rock On! that made her popular as a Bollywood actress when she moved from television to the big screen. Gung-ho about her turn in this film, she says, “I wish rock music never leaves me. At the end of the day, all artistes are people who are hurt or broken in some way and it’s sometimes easier to channel the pain rather than happiness. That’s what the blues were made to cure,” she says. Keane, Coldplay, Pearl Jam, INXS, The Killers, and The Horrors are some of her favourite bands.

Good times ahead
Currently, Prachi has Kosha to wrap up. That apart, she plans to make the most of a break in the film’s shoot and squeeze in a holiday abroad along with a work trip. “It has been strenuous, so this will be a great breather. Besides this, I am binging on Stranger Things! My sister, who is a writer, will be here visiting me soon from Australia, so, all in all, it’s great,” she signs off.

BOMBAY TIMES (September 9, 2017)