From a Haryanvi cop to a Rajasthani doctor – Kavita Kaushik’s back in uniform

After playing a Haryanvi cop in 'F.I.R.', it’s hard to see TV actress Kavita Kaushik play anything other than Chandramukhi Chautala (her character in the show).

Now back with the vardi (uniform) in her upcoming show 'Dr Bhanumati On Duty', Kavita plays a Rajasthani Army doctor who isn’t as rough and tough as Chandramukhi. In Jaipur recently, she told us, “I’m in uniform again, but this time I’ll be playing an Army doctor, Bhanumati Bhinn, who solves medical cases in her own funny ways.She is the daughter of a Rajasthani king, and so my dialogues will be in Rajasthani. Even though I am half Rajasthani, since my father belongs to this state and many of my relatives stay here, I have never been exposed to the language. My father never spoke Marwari in the house, nor did any of my relatives. I did face a little problem in getting the accent right for my character.”

So will we get to see Rajasthan in the show? She said, “We haven’t shot the show here. Only my character hails from Rajasthan.” Talking about Jaipur, Kavita says, “Jaipur is a lovely city. I am a huge fan of laal maas and Rajasthani kadhi. I keep coming here every three months – be it for some event, wedding or a personal visit. Whenever my mom is in Jaipur, she buys silver jewellery for me because I am very fond of it. In fact, in my show I’ll be wearing a beautiful silver bracelet which my mom bought for me from Jaipur.”
Talking about both of her characters in vardi, Kavita said, “Both of them go out of their way to find the root cause of the problem and then solve it. They are similar, but different in their own ways. Chautala was a bit masculine, while Bhanumati is feminine and soft spoken,” she explained.

Her previous and current shows may be similar, but you will not see any other character from 'F.I.R.' in her new show. “No one except me will be a part of it. Gulgule (Kiku Sharda) overweight ke saath over-budget bhi ho gaye hain,(Gulgule is over-budget along with being over weight)” she joked.
Kavita told us that her dad always wanted to see her in uniform, but she ended up being an actor. “In my family, everyone is either in the Army or Police force. I am the only one who is an actor. When I was offered F.I.R., I was more than happy to do the role. Show mein hi sahi, dad ka sapna toh poora hua (dad's dream has come true, though through the medium of a TV show).”

Commenting on the way TV shows and films portray women police officers in fitted uniforms, she said, “In the show, my uniform wasn’t well-fitted, as we wanted the character to look real and not glamourous. But when I met Salman Khan, he told me, ‘Kavita, actors have the power to change things. When you are in uniform, first thing you should advocate is fitness. Nobody wants to see a fat and unhealthy police officer.’ I followed his advice and started doing yoga. I also started wearing a fitted uniform in the show. I was at the airport one day when a few lady cops came up to me and said, ‘Ma’am, humne aapko dekh ke apni vardi fitting ki karaayi hai (We got our clothes fitted according to how your character dresses) .’ So if by wearing fitted uniform on screen I’m inspiring women officials to get fit, I don’t see anything bad in it.”
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