Showing posts with label Maanvi Gagroo interview. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Maanvi Gagroo interview. Show all posts
You can tell just by watching an intimate scene whether the director is a man or a woman-Maanvi Gagroo
3:14 PM
Maanvi Gagroo, currently seen in Heer Sara, opens up on scripts that kept her away from the big screen, and the importance of female gaze while filming intimacy
Priyanka Sharma (MID-DAY; June 14, 2026)
This Friday, actor Maanvi Gagroo returned to the theatres after six years. That gap was driven by a lack of compelling scripts. So, we assumed her latest release, Heer Sara, must have ticked all the boxes for her to have boarded the Patralekha-starrer.
“When Kartik [Chaudhry, director] and Manuj [Sharma, co-writer] told me, ‘We have this story about two girls on a road trip and they go on a bike trip from Indore to Puducherry,’ I got excited,” she says.
Impressed with the script, Gagroo dived into the prep for the film, and was pleasantly surprised by the collaborative nature of her director and writer.
“The more I was working on it, the more it was becoming like a collaborative project. Suddenly, it felt like I was involved in the characterization. I would discuss with them how Indoris talk — their Hindi is different from how it’s spoken in Mumbai. So, I thought about how I could bring that to the character,” she says.
Heer Sara stood out among the films being offered to the actor at the time. We wonder if she spotted a pattern in the scripts that she rejected. “Amateur dialogues, token female protagonists, and shallow characterization,” she cites.
“Just because you have a woman at the centre of a story, doesn’t make it a feminist one. And it’s not like I only do feminist stuff. I’m open to doing anything. We can only tell stories and let people take whatever lessons they take from it,” she shares.
Another recurring character that came her way was of an influencer. Gagroo says, “It’s okay to show an influencer, but then you have make it authentic, right? For that you have to research how influencers talk, what their life is like, and what their struggles are. Not to say that all influencers are the same, but some certain struggles will be universal, right? I just felt there was no depth in a lot of the scripts that I was getting. For the lack of a better word, it felt like ChatGPT-ed. It’s okay to use it as a tool, but where is the creativity?”
Feminist stories continue to be exceptions in Hindi cinema. Ones that have intent blended with powerful storytelling are even rarer. How difficult is it to be a feminist in the Hindi film industry, we ask. “Oh boy! How much time do you have?” she laughs.
“It’s hard. But it’s also easy. The industry is a microcosm of the society at large. So, there are people who understand feminism, and work on feminist principles. They will treat men and women the same. But there are people who don’t and think, ‘Hero toh hero hota hai’. So you just navigate it, and whenever you can draw lines, you do it,” she says.
She’s also observed tokenism in the industry. “I don’t like being discriminated against because of my gender. I don’t like it if I’m in a situation where I’m not being heard, or my opinion is not being paid attention to. A lot of times they have a singular woman in a room full of men, just as a token service. They say, ‘Ours is a diverse room’, but it’s not,” she says.
It might take the industry some time to lighten the burden that feminist artistes carry every day, but there’s something that Gagroo finds hope in. “The phase that we are in, there are a lot of women in the crew, which was not something we had earlier,” she says.
Seeing women as assistant directors, in different departments of filmmaking, heading several of them, on the biggest of projects, is a change that the actor wants to highlight. “That is one way of helping the cause of feminism, because the minute men start interacting with women in the workspace, automatically they start treating them like people,” she says.
The conversation moves towards the importance of the female gaze, especially while shooting intimacy. Gagroo, who shot one such scene in Heer Sara and a few in Four More Shots Please! (2019–25), says that most male directors focus on the female body to highlight intimacy.
“Nowadays, you can tell just by watching an intimate scene whether the director is a man or a woman. The female gaze will always focus on emotional intimacy. And you don’t need to be naked for emotional intimacy because it’s about the lighting, the chemistry,” she says.
But the actor makes a point to heap praise at her Heer Sara director for displaying sensitivity while filming the intimate scene. What especially touched Gagroo was that Chaudhry didn’t need her to explain her reservations or requirements for the scene.
“There’s one scene where my character and Nishank’s [Verma] character make out in a trial room. The team was so sensitive to the fact that actors are also people at the end of the day. It’s one thing if I ask for certain things and they do it, but when it comes from them, I find it very heartwarming. And now, of course, we have intimacy coordinators. So, that makes it a lot better for actors,” she signs off.
In Four More Shots Please 2, she was the most loved character, and I feared in Season 3, she would be hated-Maanvi Gagroo
8:31 AM
Enjoying two releases in Four More Shots Please 3 and Tripling 3, Maanvi discusses her apprehensions of playing a bitter character in the women-led show
Letty Mariam Abraham (MID-DAY; November 8, 2022)
How does it feel to have two shows dropping on the same day? “It gets hectic with the promotions,” warns Maanvi Gagroo, before stating that she wouldn’t trade “the fantastic feeling” for anything else. The universes of Tripling 3 and Four More Shots Please 3 are far divorced from one another, so are her characters. While she had to portray the confused Chanchal in Tripling, she had to also be convincing as the irrational and impulsive Siddhi in the Amazon Prime Video series. Over to the actor as she talks about the juggling act.
Edited excerpts from the interview.
You had back-to-back releases with Four More Shots Please 3 and Tripling 3. Which show gave you more scope to perform?
In Four More Shots Please [FMSP], each character has a definite arc. So as Siddhi [her character], I had more to do in terms of performance. Tripling also [let me perform], but the show is about the fun element. Chanchal [her character] is not someone who cracks jokes or delivers punchlines. She doesn’t have that impact, but Siddhi does.
Tripling was conceived as a road-trip show. Was it a conscious decision to not go on one this season?
Yes, Sumeet [Vyas] and I had discussed that we had already explored road trips in the first two seasons. We knew the audience loved the three characters, their parents and the familial dynamics. We wanted to stick to these pointers. Sumeet and I [felt] that season two was scattered, where we were going from one place to another. We lost the crux — the siblings and the family. By constraining the story to the family and their dynamics, we got the essence of season one back in the new edition.
Why was the track about your character’s doubts in her marriage not pursued further?
I told the director [Neeraj Udhwani] that I wished we had delved deeper into this. Chanchal is comparing her parents’ marriage to her relationship with Pranav [Kunaal Roy Kapur]. If they broke up, she would lose hope in her own marriage. But I wish we had gone deeper [to figure out] how it is wreaking havoc on her marriage. Here, the problem gets solved simplistically. But relationship issues are not solved overnight. It may be [explored] in the next season.
In FMSP, your character underwent a shift. How did you navigate that?
During the pandemic, I was sh*t scared for my parents and the elders in my family. Right after the first wave, we shot FMSP. While performing [the track after Siddhi’s father’s death], I insisted on calling him dad, because I address my father as Papa. I had to avoid going in that direction. I was confused about what Siddhi goes through after [his demise]. I didn’t agree with Siddhi being so annoying and erratic. In season two, she was the most loved character, and I feared that now, she would be hated. While shooting, I hated her, but the makers made me believe that it will all come together in the end. Finally, when I saw the season, I understood that she didn’t know how to process her emotions.
How would you describe the camaraderie with your Tripling and FMSP co-stars?
My relationship with the actors is similar to that depicted on screen. With Sumeet and Amol [Parashar], it is like a brotherly relationship. I call up Sumeet whenever anything happens in my life. I am always bullying Amol and getting away with it. I have a different equation with each of the girls of FMSP. If I need to hang, I call Sayani [Gupta]. For gossip, I call Bani J, and when I want to discuss career choices, I call Kirti [Kulhari].
A lot of people now don’t approach me for sh***y parts-Maanvi Gagroo
8:07 AM
A popular name in the web space, Maanvi Gagroo feels the perception of her as an actor has now changed
Juhi Chakraborty (HINDUSTAN TIMES; March 10, 2021)
Her OTT projects are primarily responsible for her popularity, and Maanvi Gagroo is indebted to the medium.
“The perception about me as an actor has changed. For one, the popularity part of it. Now people know that she is famous. Also, the more people see your work, the more they see you in different characters; they see your range. That is kind of like an audition. Someone trying to make a film and looking to cast people, they watch you and sign you,” shares Gagroo.
The actor, best known for web projects such as Pitchers, Tripling, Made In Heaven and Four More Shots Please!, says the more she works, the more work she will get.
“I believe it’s always better to be a working actor than just an actor. A lot of people come to Mumbai to be actors and wait for that one perfect role. I think it’s important to keep working to sharpen your craft. And I’ve been seeing that change. A lot of people don’t approach me for sh***y parts, because they know Maanvi nahi karegi. That filters out those projects,” Gagroo says.
While her career has definitely got a boost thanks to the OTT space, the actor, who was also seen in films such as Ujda Chaman (2019) and Shubh Mangal Zyada Saavdhan (2020), feels even theatrical projects are benefitting from the digital medium.
“Thankfully, the lines are blurring between OTT and films. Now when, in a theatrical film, they want a good actor, a relatively new face or a non-film face, they look at OTT. The same people are watching this content, they are also exposed to these actors. Also, there is no demarcation like the kind we have between television and films. Because we can watch TV actors everyday, there is a feeling that why should one pay to watch them in films. Also, the quality of TV dropped, so people started feeling that TV actors can’t pull it off,” she explains.
I hope that the star culture does not come to OTT; they will come with their own baggage-Maanvi Gagroo
8:27 AM
Actor Maanvi Gagroo talks of OTTs rise and what makes her worry about its growing popularity
Juhi Chakraborty (HINDUSTAN TIMES; February 6, 2021)
Known primarily for her work on the web, which includes series such as Pitchers, Tripling, Made in Heaven and Four More Shots Please!, actor Maanvi Gagroo is in a very happy space now. With the OTT gaining all the more prominence in the entertainment industry now, Gagroo is nothing but ecstatic. Having dabbled with the digital medium way back in 2015, Gagroo, 35, is delighted to witness the new found respect for the web platforms, in the eyes of “Bollywood people”. Excerpts from her interview:
During the Coronavirus pandemic, there has been a notable surge in the popularity of the OTT platforms, how do you see it?
Of course it is true that a large part of it was because of the pandemic. People were not stepping out and television is something that they were already bore of. But I feel that this is something that I had kind of predicted because I knew the popularity of the OTT was only going to rise.
But is there something that worries you about this whole situation?
My only worry is that the quality of the shows might drop because the same thing happened with TV as well. When satellite television started, there were some great shows that were made and different kinds of shows comedy, thriller, drama, antakshari shows. There was a whole gamut of shows but suddenly when it became too popular, it just was all about saas bahu and there was absolutely no variety. Even if someone tried to make a different show people were not ready to do it. It became all about TRPs, so the quality dropped. That is something I am a bit wary of. There is so much traffic on OTT. Everybody is making a web show, koi 5 minute ka bana raha hai koi ek ghante ka episode bana raha hai. When there is so much clutter, a lot of good stuff goes unnoticed, that should not happen.
Do you also worry that the star system which is so prevalent in Bollywood might also make its way on OTT now?
I hope that the star culture does not come here as well because now we are seeing ‘Bollywood’ also taking interest in OTT. But they will come with their own baggage that main toh star hoon. They will be like, ‘I need this, I need a lead role, I need poster space’. The same thing that plague our films might get transferred here. There is no way to stop it so we will see how it goes.
With so much of content, do you think there will be a case of too much on OTT, after all, how much can the audience consume?
For me my attention span has really gone down. Now when I start watching a series, I give it 15 minutes. If it engages me then great otherwise I give it up. I feel there is so much to watch. I don’t want to waste my time watching something that does not engage me. People say don’t give a series up, it will pick up post a certain episode and I’m like why should I? I think the makers will have to take cognizance of this. People’s attention span is going down.
What do you think is the way forward for the OTT platforms?
I think now more money will be pumped in the marketing also, to stand out in the clutter. I just know of 4 – 5 platforms. I am sure there are good shows as well on others but they must be getting missed. For someone whose target audience is me, in order to reach me they will have to market it in a way that it reaches me. It’s a whole new industry that is waiting to burst. No, I guess it already has burst, now it’ll only get bigger.
Ayushmann Khurrana and I are both mature enough to not let it affect our equation-Maanvi Gagroo
7:52 AM
Maanvi Gagroo, refers to controversies surrounding both their films; insists she’s not playing a stereotypical overweight girl, written for comic relief
Akash Bhatnagar (MUMBAI MIRROR; October 26, 2019)
Maanvi Gagroo is all set to impress in her first lead role, in Abhishek Pathak’s directorial debut, Ujda Chaman. She plays Apsara, an overweight girl, opposite a prematurely bald Sunny Singh. And despite having been part of films like No One Killed Jessica and PK and several shows, she admits she felt like a fresher. “There were many in the unit who were clueless about my shows, so, it felt like I was starting afresh,” she says candidly.Why did she wait so long to graduate to the big screen? “I was getting offers to play the hero’s sister or friend, whereas online I had more substantial roles. So, I didn’t really need to do films,” she reasons, pointing out that this one too isn’t a stereotypical Bollywood character, loud and desperate to hook a guy, incorporated for comic relief. “Overweight people are also normal,” she argues.
Maanvi reveals that being in a body suit invited a lot of reactions on the set. “During the shoot of the song 'Outfit' I was sitting next to Guru Randhawa. When I got out of my bodysuit, he initially failed to recognise me,” she laughs.
Has she faced discrimination in the industry as a chubby girl? “Obviously, and I only landed typical bubbly parts. One casting director told me since I wasn’t either skinny or fat, they couldn’t cast me,” she shares. And has her perception towards bald people changed? “I never had a perception to change. Some friends messaged to say they felt Ujda Chaman was their story. One even said losing hair had changed his personality and diminished his confidence,” she admits.
The Delhi girl enjoyed filming in the city. “I was the self-appointed guide, taking the team to the best place for momos and shopping sprees. During a shoot in Dilli Haat, I bumped into my school friend’s mother and sister. Later, he told me how proud they were to see me there,” she beams.
Maanvi is currently shooting for Shubh Mangal Zyada Saavdhan in Varanasi and is all praise for co-star Ayushmann Khurrana. “We share the same sense of humour and crack PJs,” she chortles. That’s surprising given that their respective films, Ujda Chaman and Bala, are embroiled in a court case? “We don’t talk much about the films as we have other things to discuss. And we are both mature enough to not let it affect our equation. He complimented me on my trailer, I did the same,” she signs off.
We borrowed a little bit of culture from every city we visited-Sumeet Vyas
7:57 AM
Tripling writer-actor Sumeet Vyas joins co-stars Maanvi Gagroo and Amol Parashar to decode the journey of season 2
Letty Mariam Abraham (MID-DAY; April 30, 2019)
Ask any writer and he will tell you that while scripting the first season of a show is usually organic, the second outing proves to be the litmus test. In that regard, TVF Tripling shines bright — the recently dropped second season, which has Sumeet Vyas, Maanvi Gagroo and Amol Parashar play the squabbling Sharma siblings, has been widely appreciated.
Vyas, who doubles up as an actor and screenplay writer for the slice-of-life comedy, says the team spent a considerable time developing the material. "We took almost a year to develop the script as Akarsh [Khurana, co-writer] and I were busy with our individual projects. In fact, we were shooting for a film together, and told our director [Sameer Saxena] that we will crack the script during that time. Luckily, there was no haste to finish, and we didn't want to write for the sake of finishing it. TVF and Sameer were patient enough to let the idea breathe," he explains.
If Vyas's Chandan and Gagroo's Chanchal found their feet in the first instalment, the latest edition belongs to Parashar whose character Chitvan matures from a fun-loving youngster to a responsible father figure. "The idea was never to bank on the same kind of craziness. It may be easier, but it wouldn't hold in the long run; it limits you. Spirit-wise, the character has remained the same," explains Parashar.
As much a travelogue as it is a family drama, Vyas says the locations play a pivotal role in the narrative. "We borrowed a little bit of culture from every city we visited and incorporated that into the story. That was a wholesome way to utilise each location."
Gagroo, on her part, is ecstatic that the show enabled her to tick off a few destinations from her travel list. Having shot across Kolkata, Delhi, Jaipur, Lucknow, Ahmedabad and Sikkim, it is the north-eastern state that has her heart. "It was the first time I was visiting Sikkim. It was cold and beautiful, and the food was delicious," she gushes, before Parashar good-naturedly cuts in, "It was so cold, I couldn't get out of the blanket."
Their travel diaries are filled with anecdotes that range from sweet to bizarre. Ask them if a city wasn't agreeable to them, and Parashar is quick to respond, "Maanvi had a problem that her hotel room in Kolkata was too big. How does one empathise with that?" Feigning hurt, Gagroo defends her stance, "It was a vintage hotel with high ceilings and huge rooms. I get scared alone at night. My rooms have to be the right size. This happened right after the Ahmedabad stay where we all were cribbing about how the rooms were too small."
Their easy banter shows how the three actors have evolved from being co-stars to friends. "During the first season, we were only concerned about finding our characters. Thankfully, the stress points were gone by this season," smiles Parashar.
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