Soha Ali Khan: I did try and impart as much as I could about being a 'rajkumari'

Soha Ali Khan, Lara Dutta, Anya Singh and Kritika Kamra play the sisters in the Zee5 show 'Kaun Banegi Shikharwati'.

A new comedy on Zee5 follows the trials and tribulations of four sisters reunited after six years at their ageing father’s crumbling royal palace. In Kaun Banegi Shikharwati, King Mrityunjay (Naseeruddin Shah) decides to con his daughters into undertaking his debt-ridden estate. Lara Dutta, Soha Ali Khan, Kritika Kamra and Anya Singh play the sisters in descending order of age.

Soha Ali Khan was last seen in Saheb, Biwi Aur Gangster 3 and Anya Singh was recently seen in Velle. In a video interview, Ali Khan, who plays Gayatri, a dancer and single parent, and Singh, who plays Uma, a gamer with several allergies, spoke about the show and working with this ensemble cast.

How would you describe the show?

Soha: It’s colourful, chaotic, quirky and entertaining.

Anya: I would add that it is also a riot and a visual treat. This is a show about a dysfunctional family with characters who are real and flawed. Everyone will find someone from within this ensemble that they can relate to.

Also read: 'Kaun Banegi Shikharwati' review: Hodgepodge of a series about dysfunctional royalty

Soha, you took on this role after a three-year break from acting. What attracted you to the part of Gayatri?

I was looking for a reason to leave my daughter Inaaya, but nothing was compelling enough, really. After she was born I just fell in love hard, like always. When I am in love, that is all I can do. Then I thought it was a little obsessive. She’s older now and we can communicate. I did need to find something of my own again and not lose myself completely in motherhood. I did write a book and that was an enjoyable experience, but I have always enjoyed acting and this was the right vehicle for me. Because I was a little scared of doing something solo and an ensemble meant I could share the burden while also being present in my daughter's life. Life had been stressful and I felt the need to do something a little more lighthearted. I really liked the setting of a dysfunctional royal family, the crumbling palace and playing a character who is very sweet but with an edge to her. I have often played sweet characters, but this one took sweet to another level where she became very annoying. So I thought it was nice to try and play someone who is always nice, never losing her cool, obviously thinks she is better than everyone around her, but scratch the surface and you see how everything is actually falling apart.

Did Inaaya enjoy being on set with you?

We managed to pull off the entire shoot in two months of 2020 with a little bit of patchwork later. There was no way I could trust someone else to look after her for two months. Those are my issues with control, but it was great to be able to have her on set because we were in a very strict bio-bubble and could be mask-free in the palace. She would sit on set and say 'action' and even when Anya and Naseer saab are having a very involved scene, and I am just furniture in the back, she would say ‘well done mama’ when it was all over. It was lovely to have her around.

Anya, you were actually the baby on set.

Yes. Inaaya was often confused as to who is the child on set. But it was so interesting to be treated as an equal even though I was the youngest, for them to take my opinion and to have a conversation with me rather than impose an idea or suggestion. In a workspace that is all that one wants. I am the most inexperienced, hence I was extremely nervous but when I got on set and everyone treated me like an equal, it changed the environment. It was nice to be protected and to have people do small things to lift you if you are feeling down. They all went out of their way to do that, which felt great.

Were you nervous, intimidated, excited before joining the shoot?

Anya: I felt all these things. I was nervous before leaving. I was going to be working with Naseeruddin Shah and Raghubir sir and Lara Dutta who was Miss Universe and Soha who is an actor and comes from great lineage. She’s actually the ‘rajkumari’.

Soha: I did try and teach these girls and impart as much as I could.

Anya: But we couldn't imbibe much because in reality she is far from a princess.

So you notice how real these people are. Like Kritika is the most caring one and does sweet gestures. Lara was the most protective. Everyone was very genuine and got along well so the nervousness just faded. After that it was hard to keep us apart.

What was it like having the resources and experience of Naseeruddin Shah and Raghubir Yadav?

Soha: Naseer sir is a really good teacher. He related to us and spent a lot of time with us. We would often have dinner together and he would tell us many stories. On set, you defer to the director - which was either Guaravv Chawla or Ananya Banerjee - but since he is so senior he would have something to say. For example, I was pausing in the wrong place in a dialogue. He suggested trying it in a different way and that made sense to me. There was a lot to learn. If you keep your eyes and ears open when you are in the presence of Naseer saab, Raghubir sir, you have no choice but to come away a richer person.

Anya: Yes, Naseer sir is a great teacher and to be able to share screen space with him is one thing, but to be able to just sit and chit-chat with him was a whole different experience and opportunity. The stories they both shared - there's a lot to learn from that and of course to watch them. They are very nuanced actors. They do little things like with their eyes and eyebrows, and you think how can I do that. We ate together, danced together, played table tennis and badminton. And let me tell you, Naseer sir is very good at table tennis and also  very competitive.

The royal contest is designed by the king to toughen up his daughters. What do you think about the idea of contests and the notion that women need to be toughened up?

Soha: I don't think one rule applies to every person so you really have to gauge what you are doing to that person by egging them on. I myself am very competitive and I had to sit on my hands to not force that on my daughter. In her school they don't give medals and or award first place till a later age because that takes away a child’s confidence. You have to see if you are disempowering someone and taking away their self confidence or encouraging them, and that only happens when you know somebody. Shows like Succession and Kaun Banegi Shikharwati are about a father playing his children against each other, which can sometimes work but at other times it doesn’t.

Anya: I agree with Soha. But also women don't need to be toughened up especially with the kind of physical changes we go through - having a child and hormonal changes, etc. We are physically and mentally tough. I think women handle things a lot better than men. I think this becomes more evident when you don't have a choice in a situation.