Returning with the second edition of The Trip, Shweta Tripathi on her unconventional career choices and life after marriage
Letty Mariam Abraham (MID-DAY; November 27, 2018)

How has life changed after marriage?
The only difference is that my address has changed. I am still doing up our room. We’ve been dating for five years and couldn’t wait to get married. Cheetah [Chaitanya Sharma] is my anchor; he brought stability to my life. Acting is not just about glamour, you are portraying the emotions of so many characters and that sometimes plays with your sanity. That’s why it’s essential to have some ‘me’ time, and I get that with him.

The Trip 2 revolves around female bonding. What are you like with your girlfriends off-screen?
My girlfriends and I talk about cinema, the shows we are binge watching and how we can make a difference in society. We play board games like Settlers of Catan, and also travel together. In fact, we are already planning our next trip to Sri Lanka. Unlike what men think, girls don’t talk only about boys and shopping. Sadly, that perception has been created on screen because there are barely any female writers who can showcase the real equation women share. Luckily, I have worked with directors who are gender neutral in their treatment.

Did you miss Lisa Haydon during the shoot of the second season?
Only the production house can explain why she couldn’t be part of the second season. Lisa is a thorough professional. Even during the shoot of the first edition, she didn’t tell us about her pregnancy nor did she ask for favours. The way she celebrated motherhood on Instagram was beautiful. She is a commendable actor. We all missed her a lot.

Did it take a while to adjust with Amyra Dastur, considering she was the newbie on the set?
During the first meeting, Sapna [Pabbi], Mallika [Dua] and I kept talking about season one, and it was bound to be awkward for her. But after that, it was all about season 2. We became one unit.

You’ve created a niche with your off-beat choices in shows and movies. Has your career panned out the way you had planned?
I grew up on Yash Raj films and imagined myself wearing a yellow salwar suit, running across fields. I knew I liked to perform, but back then, I didn’t know what it truly entailed. For me, acting is not about looking glamorous — I barely have any makeup on in most of the films I do. I enjoy portraying real characters; the rest are perks of the job. My goal is to play characters that people take home.

You have worked with some talented actors. Has any co-star influenced you?
It would have to be Nawazuddin Siddiqui, my co-actor in Haraamkhor, my first film. There was so much to learn from him. He was so humble and down-to-earth; he would often discuss how we could do a certain scene together. It was not to put me down or challenge me, he did that out of respect for me as a co- star. That gesture made me confident as an artiste. Once, he told me, ‘Some actors always need to be choosy.’ His words have stayed with me since.

Making her web debut with The Trip 2, Amyra Dastur on why it is refreshing to work with an all-women cast
Letty Mariam Abraham (MID-DAY; October 2, 2018)

Amyra Dastur, who is the latest addition to the second season of The Trip, insists she couldn't have asked for a better show to mark her debut in the digital space. While one may assume her enthusiasm stems from the runaway success of the show's first season, her reasons are quite different. "I have grown up around women. My mom quit her job to take care of me, my aunt raised two daughters on her own. I always wanted to do a project that showcases the strength of a woman," asserts Dastur.

The Pondicherry shoot behind her, she has the highest regard for co-stars Shweta Tripathi, Sapna Pabbi and Mallika Dua. The industry has often perpetuated the notion that collaborations between female actors are accompanied by catfights and ugly showdowns. However, Dastur emphasises that she has had a better experience working with women.

"There was no b**chiness among us. I have worked with insecure actors before; you finish the project and hope to never work with them again. Men are more b**chy than women. This industry is sexist. I hope the attitude changes, but that will take time," she says, adding, "I have been in a situation where I was asked to tone down my acting so that I don't overshadow my co-actor."

Considering the rest of the cast knew each other having worked together in the previous season, did Dastur feel left out? "Never! Sapna and I have been friends since 2014, and have often taken trips together. Right from the start of the shoot, they asked me to blatantly tell them if I felt left out. We would constantly hang out in the vanity van together."

Shweta with co-stars Mallika Dua, Amyra Dastur and Sapna Pabbi in the upcoming show

Actress Shweta Tripathi reveals that her real-life bachelorette and wedding coincided with the shoot of her upcoming show
Natasha Coutinho (MUMBAI MIRROR; September 22, 2018) 

Shweta Tripathi, who’s returning for the second season of The Trip, with co-stars Sapna Pabbi and Mallika Dua, and Amyra Dastur stepping in for Lisa Haydon, is excited about the TV show. “A lot has happened between the two seasons. The first one saw my character’s bachelorette while in the second one, I’m married. It made me do me homework since there’s no script for what happened in between,” she informs.

While the previous season was shot in Thailand, this one brings the girl gang to India. “I love travelling within the country too. Pondicherry is one of my favourite places. I learnt surfing there and attended a theatre workshop, so I keep visiting it every two years,” Shweta says. Incidentally, it was also a case of life imitating art, and vice versa, for Shweta. “I got ready to be married in The Trip. Then, I had my real-life bachelorette, which was followed by the wedding (with rapper-beau Chaitnya Sharma earlier this year). We then shot for the show, where I played a married woman,” she says, adding, “I’ve never played a married character before so this one’s like my lucky charm.”

And while she misses Lisa, Shweta is all praise for Amyra. “She has a young, fun vibe so one can never be bored around her. It can be tough for a new person to join a team that is so closeknit but it was smooth sailing with Amyra from the start,” she reveals.

Next up, Shweta is doing a film, Gone Kesh, which is about a 15-year-old girl who discovers she has alopecia. “My first Tamil film is also gearing up for release,” she says.

Sonil Dedhia (MID-DAY; August 28, 2018)

Much like it does for comedy sitcoms, improvisational work contributed immensely to the screenplay of The Trip 2, which marks Amyra Dastur’s foray into the digital space. So much so that a fair share of the dialogues that will be heard in the show was the brainwave of Dastur and co-star Mallika Dua, both of who could tickle the funny bone owing to the bond they shared off screen.

Dastur, who will be credited as writer along with Dua, tells mid-day, “Mallika’s character, is related to that of mine. Inevitably, our scenes needed us to feed off each others’ dialogues. Whenever we’d rehearse along with Sonam [Nair, director and co-writer], we’d improvise and add our own lines. The unit kept cracking up, so Sonam decided to retain them in the series.”

Working with the all-female crew in Pondicherry was a delightful experience, she says. “Since none of us knew Tamil, communicating with the locals resulted in hilarious situations.”

Amyra Dastur to essay lead role in second season of miniseries, The Trip, after mommy duties keep Lisa Haydon tied down
Mohar Basu (MID-DAY; May 31, 2018)

With Lisa Haydon's tot turning one this month, the model has her hands full with baby duties. Her attention turned towards her boy, Zack Lalvani, the actor has decided to bow out of the second season of the web series, The Trip. With Haydon, her character Shonali too makes an exit from the show, leaving the door open for Amyra Dastur, who will now play one of the four protagonists in the second edition.

Dastur tells mid-day of her currently-unnamed character, "I'm excited to finally play a fun-filled, comic role. She [character] is quirky, intelligent and hilarious." With Lisa Haydon having already established her equation with the rest of the cast — including Mallika Dua, Sapna Pabbi and Shweta Tripathi - Amyra Dastur knows she'll need to make a distinct place for herself.

"It'll be interesting to see how my character's chemistry develops with the girls. Sonam and I are discussing how my character will react to situations, and more importantly, to the other girls. My focus is to ensure that my character is relatable and in sync with the cast and story." An international shooting schedule at an undisclosed location is being planned. Part two of the Bindass and Disney India series is likely to kick-off from where the first instalment concluded.

Letty Mariam Abraham (MID-DAY; November 8, 2017)

Her understated performances in Masaan (2015) and Haraamkhor (2017) made critics sit up and take notice. Before one could bracket her as an arthouse performer, Shweta Tripathi sprung back on the scene with The Trip - a web series that couldn't be further removed from her previous projects. Signing on a light-hearted show, she says, is a deliberate attempt to continuously surprise the audience. As she returns with the second season of The Trip, Tripathi talks about forging a deep friendship with co-stars Mallika Dua, Lisa Haydon and Sapna Pabbi, and the joys of travel.

Will The Trip 2 kick off from where the last season left off?
Considering the last trip constituted my bachelorette party, I don't know if my character will be shown as a married girl this time. We'll know once the show goes on floors in January. I've heard that it'll be a road trip in Rajasthan, but there's no confirmation yet. This season too will be about the characters discovering themselves during the trip. I think travel helps you grow as a person.

Are all the protagonists reprising their roles in the new season?
Mallika, Sapna and I are on board. Since Lisa just had her baby, I'm not sure if she will be joining us. I hope all four of us get back together because the last season was a great experience.

Did you stay in touch with them in the interim?
Sapna and I manage to catch up. We are total health freaks, so we meet over salads or coffee. She does Pilates and I've got hooked on to it because of her [laughs].

Have you met Lisa and her newborn Zack?
We had planned to meet her, but it didn't work out as she has been travelling a lot. But, she has been sending us baby pictures regularly. I have been quite busy too. I had to travel to Paris and Busan for the screening of Haraamkhor at their respective film festivals.

Most of your films have won critical acclaim. Had you imagined this sort of appreciation this early your career?
Not in the least. I didn't know such films existed. I wanted to be the kind of actor who would wear a salwar suit and dance in the fields [laughs]. Now, as I attend film festivals, it all seems like a dream. I'm glad to balance my serious roles with something like The Trip, which is an opportunity to do something different.