I’m out of a relationship almost every day: Swastika

First, a Filmfare Award. Then, a film in which she’s blown the critics and the audience away with a nuanced, complex performance. And you thought that the ever-unpredictable, ever-so-lovely Swastika Mukherjee was low on ammo? She’s been largely away from Kolkata for the greater part of the last year, but we connected with Swastika in Budapest, where she was shooting for a Marathi film.Excerpts from a chat:
Congratulations for the Filmfare Award. It has come at a time when many in Tollywood had almost written you off.
Honestly, I was ecstatic when I got to know about it. I had got quite a few calls, requesting me to stay back for the awards. Had it been a Delhi or Mumbai, I would have definitely come down for a day. But since I was in Budapest, it was impossible. There were a number of questions on my mind: if I wasn’t there, would I be passed over for the award? Such a thing is not completely unheard of in Kolkata award circles! I first got to know about Gairik (Sarkar) winning the best cinematography award for Saheb Bibi Golaam. Then I was away for the shoot for the next two-three hours. When I checked the phone again, it was full of congratulatory messages and dancing emoticons. I started screaming and jumping, and everyone from the production team was very happy. They bought me chocolates; we got Thai food for dinner. Incidentally, my next shot had me lying on the pavement. While taking the shot, the director told me that I should keep a photo of that moment — actress lying on the road after winning the Filmfare!
Your two back-to-back Bengali releases are Saheb Bibi Golaam and the just-released Asamapta. How difficult was it to portray the two characters — Jaya from SBG and Tuki from Asamapta?
Oh they’re from Mars and Pluto; that’s how different they are. While Jaya is very upfront and in your face, Tuki is a completely domestic woman. She is very dependent on her husband for everything. As far as difficulty levels go, I can only tell you that as an actor, my biggest fear is the language barrier. The only thing that worries me is if my lines will sound right and authentic. I’ve never had to do much homework for my roles. I put myself in the position of the characters I play, and it flows naturally from there. There is this perception that Swastika is a strong and independent person, who doesn’t mince words. But what if I too want the taste of the domestic life that Tuki has? I don’t know if I’ll like it then, but it seems at times that it would be nice to not have to work and depend on my partner for my needs. What if I didn’t have all these responsibilities and didn’t need to take so many calls in life? This is my biggest fantasy…
Both Bratya Basu and you have got a lot of accolades for the film. How was it working with him?
Initially, I was very apprehensive about sharing the screen with him, since he’s a minister and a politician, apart from being a senior. I didn’t know him at all then, but over the course of the shoot, I chatted a lot with him post pack-up. We have very difficult scenes and we needed to be on the same plane. There was a surprise element, since I didn’t know how he would react if I, say, slapped him on screen. I got to know this, since there is a scene when I actually slap him!
What about being in the same film with dad Santu Mukherjee? How was the experience?
It’s an absolute tragedy that I don’t have any scenes with him in Asamapta! My sister Ajopa and I pestered him to keep a French cut for the role. And trust me, we know that he has a steady fan following. They don’t make actors like him anymore. I felt the same thing when I was acting opposite Dipankar (De) jethu in Ebar Shabor. The other good thing was that we were shooting on my mother’s death anniversary. Since Baba was with me
and busy shooting, I was very relieved.
Asamapta is your second film with Suman Mukhopadhyay after Sesher Kobita. How was the experience?
Suman is a pretty easy and cool director to work with. He gives a lot of freedom to actors. I didn’t know him at all during Sesher Kobita, while for this film I was a part of everything from the inception and pre-production. But that didn’t mean that anything changed in the workplace because of the familiarity with Suman. I kept requesting him for a later call time, but far from helping, it was actually a disadvantage that I knew him so well. He could ask me to do things and I would have to oblige!
There are rumours that after being together for quite some time, Suman and you have broken up…
How do I answer this? People go through ups and downs in a relationship. I’m someone who would say that I’m out of a relationship almost every day! It’s so difficult to predict how a relationship will go. One day everything seems fine and the next day, life may take a different turn. It’s not that Suman and I are not communicating — obviously we have to, since there is a film releasing. But it’s not a very good time for me now. Let’s see what the future holds.