Nushrratt Bharuccha: Happy to play a damsel in distress if the story appeals to me

Actor Nushrratt Bharuccha believes in picking up scripts that resonate with her and said she is not averse to playing a "damsel in distress" if it is backed by a good story.

The actor, known for her roles in films such as Pyaar Ka Punchnama, Aakash Vaani, Sonu Ke Titu Ki Sweety, Chhorri and Dream Girl, said there are films and stories where somebody comes to save the girl and they are equally interesting.

"I find that journey and that story of how she gets saved by someone also very interesting. It's just about the story... If the story appeals to me, I'm happy to be a damsel in distress and (wait for) a hero coming and saving me. It's absolutely fine," the actor told PTI in an interview.

In her upcoming Akelli, Nushrratt plays Jyoti, a woman who gets stuck in war-torn Iraq and attempts to make her way back to India to reunite with her family. The story is about a woman's fight for survival in an extremely difficult situation, which instantly hooked the actor.

"How she is stuck, where she's stuck and how she's trying to go back to her loved ones in India... In such situations, somebody would've given up. They would have said it is daunting and too big a thing. But she fought for it. So, her entire story was very interesting to do," she said.

Scheduled to be released in theatres on August 25, Akelli is directed by first-time filmmaker Pranay Meshram.

Nushrratt said the film was narrated to her three years ago but she declined the offer as she felt it was not the "kind of film I want to do right now".

But the team stuck around and approached her casting director Vicky Sidana to convince the actor.

"I think what happened was the whole team came together with the right intention of wanting to make a good film and telling this story as honestly and truthfully as possible.”

"When I met them a couple of times, I was like, 'These are a bunch of good guys who want to make a good film.’ Very rarely you see actors taking that leap of faith when there is a new director, new producer and new team," Nushratt said.

Akelli is her third film as the lead after Chorri (2021) and Janhit Mein Jaari (2022).

She said her confidence in carrying a film on her shoulders has definitely grown but she believes an actor can only do so much.

"Maybe the confidence has gone up where I know that I will deliver the performance and the story that I've been given. But that's actually all an actor can do. If the director, producer or the person selling the film don't know their jobs, I can't correct that," she added.

The person who is the face of the film has a very small role to play in its success, according to Nushrratt.

"There's a lot of other machinery and parts that are working in cohesion for that whole thing to happen and get the right result. If one thing or another goes up or down, it will all fall on my face. But that's the truth of it. I can only do so much," she said.

Going forward, the actor said she will continue to take up projects that will appeal to her, otherwise she will say no to them.

"As actors, we are accustomed to hearing a no, that 'you don't fit into this part', 'hi, we've cast somebody else', or 'you just don't work for this part anymore'. But they should be open to hearing a no from us as well. So if I don't like it, I'm saying no," she added.

Akelli is produced by Dashami Studioz' Nitin Vaidya, Ninad Vaidya, Aparna Padgaonkar along with Vicky Sidana and Shashant Shah.

Israeli actors Tsahi Halevi and Amir Boutrous, best known for featuring in the series Fauda, are making their Indian film debut with the project.