Vidya Balan: "'Sherni' happened to me when I was ready for it to happen to me"

Actor Vidya Balan in 'Sherni', releasing on Amazon Prime Video on June 18, 2021.

Vidya Balan and filmmaker Amit Masurkar became acquainted during the shooting of a series of ad films. The association then expanded to the director of the National Award-winning Newton approaching the National Award-winning actress (The Dirty Picture) to star in his third feature film, Sherni. Balan plays Vidya Vincent, a forest officer at the frontline of a man-animal conflict situation. It’s a quieter role than her last outing as the maths genius in Shakuntala Devi and one that took her out of her comfort zone, into the wild.

In a video-call interview, the actress and writer-director spoke about the making of Sherni (Amazon Prime Video from June 18) and its central themes.

Vidya Balan plays the part of forest officer Vidya Vincent in 'Sherni'.

Vidya Balan

What was your preparation process for ‘Sherni’ and what drew you to do this film?

‘Sherni' happened to me when I was ready for it to happen to me. I was never comfortable with creepy-crawlies. I am OK with sitting in a jeep and going on safari, but that was the extent of my interaction with the wild world. Quite honestly, I had engaged with the issue of the environment only to the extent that it suited me. I always had a problem with the idea that it’s all or nothing, and the film helped me resolve that. I used to say we need development, and it comes at the cost of the environment but you can't do away with development. But this film, and my interactions with the forest officers in Madhya Pradesh who helped us, made me realise that a balance is achievable. It does not have to be either/or. Many are working towards conservation and doing it quietly.

What are the other layers to the story, besides conservation?

It’s a many-layered story, seen not just through the eyes of Vidya Vincent, though she is the central protagonist who you need in order to follow the story. But the varied perspectives come in via other characters. It gets tougher for Vidya because she is a woman and there is a deeply entrenched patriarchal mindset, like that line in the trailer – ‘when there’s a problem here, they send a lady officer’ insinuating that a woman will weaken them. The attitude is both sexist and patronising, which angers me. But most people are not even aware that saying this about a lady officer or about anyone could be offensive. Physical strength is associated only with men.

Amit said this one thing. He said you don't have to roar to be a tigress. You can sit poised and graceful and not do a thing and yet scare someone or something away.

There were times when I was tempted to say or do more, verbally or facially, but Amit said this one thing. He said you don't have to roar to be a tigress. You can sit poised and graceful and not do a thing and yet scare someone or something away.

After ‘Shakuntala Devi’ now ‘Sherni’ is also set for an OTT release. How do you feel about this compared to a theatrical release?

Shakuntala Devi went wide, and was so loved. It opened my eyes to the fact that people like stories; it does not matter where they view it. OTT opens up a new audience. It does take some getting used to because box office collections are immediate whereas responses to an OTT release keep trickling in and you need to be patient. Also you don't get to know the viewership numbers. Having said that, as an artist, you just want your work to be watched and loved.

Amit Masurkar

What was your pitch for this film?

It was very easy because after the script was ready, the first person we met was Vidya and she wanted to do this right away. She had just done Shakuntala Devi with producers Abundantia Entertainment, so we decided to go to them with the project. Sherni was meant to have a theatrical release but because of the pandemic we went with Amazon Prime and that was a very good decision because theatres are not open and hardly any films are releasing. Besides, the film explores the pertinent and timely subject of conservation.

What kind of research was involved?

Writer Aastha Tiku and Siddhesh Kankekar did most of the research. He (Siddhesh) would compile books and articles and Aastha would analyse the material. I would read what was distilled after the analysis. We also met some forest department officials to figure out what it is like at the ground level, we went to some national parks and places around them and we travelled around Madhya Pradesh. We shot the film in Balaghat in Madhya Pradesh and on the outskirts of Bhopal. Bureaucracy, red tapism and hierarchy lend themselves to satire. The humour is observational and organic to the story.

What was Vidya Balan’s process for preparing for the role?

She met and interacted with female forest officers in order to understand their perspective on their job, their relationship with their families, their views on life and their experiences in dealing with tough situations. She went on long hikes in the jungle with forest guards. Vidya is inquisitive by nature and she referred to documentaries and books to understand this world better. We also did readings and rehearsals with the actors where a lot of their dynamics and personality traits were discussed.

What is your approach to filmmaking?

I am interested in tackling the larger ideas. When you are writing something, there are three aspects. First is the bigger picture: what is it that you really want to say? Secondly, the characters: who are they? The third is the plot. For me, this is the least important of the three. Once Aastha and I picked the subject, the characters started falling into place. For instance, we profiled a lot of women officers and looked at how they were dealing with the system and through that we came up with Vidya’s character.

Also read: Review | 'Sherni': The story of two tigresses. Slow burn, but impactful