‘I was hoping Aamir Khan would like my audition’: Mithila Palkar on trying hands at comedy with Happy Patel and Bhoot Bangla

Excerpts edited for clarity and brevity.

To begin with, how did you land Happy Patel: Khatarnak Jasoos?

Just the way it usually happens with films, I auditioned for it. The casting director reached out and briefed me about the project. But what he said was different this time: the audition would be taken by the directors themselves. Like we are recommending faces and names and everything, and then the readings will happen with Kavi and Vir. So I was like, okay, fine. And then we did a reading on Zoom call, and that was my audition, and soon things fell in place.

Was Aamir also involved in the audition, given that he fully immerses himself in the films he backs, and this time is even doing a minor role? What kind of conversations did you have with him?

So Aamir sir and I don’t have scenes together in the film. But I do know he saw my audition and he was indeed very involved. And it was constantly at the back of my mind, that fear that even after Vir and Kavi liked my audition, this was just the first step. I was hoping he also likes it. Because when he approves, then you’re really through. So after he saw it, we met somewhere and he said, ‘You did a good job and welcome aboard.’ To hear Aamir sir say that about your performance is a big compliment.

Mithila Palkar says she is a big fan of Vir Das’s humour.

With Vir Das helming the project and knowing his command over humour, what was it like working with him on a comedy feature?

The one note Vir left us all with is that this is the universe in which these characters live, so they believe in it fully. ‘So play the lines and not the comedy.’ That really helped. Instead of trying to be funny, the situation itself is funny, you just play it. You don’t try to be deliberately funny; just play your lines, and everything will follow. There was also a lot of scope for improvisation as well. First we’d see how it was written and planned, and then we could have fun with the scene. I hadn’t done comedy at all, so this was a completely new world for me. Some people are naturally funny, like Sharib Hashmi, who’s funny in real life too, so it comes easily to him. I was like a wide-eyed kid on set, trying to learn as much as I could. And getting to work with Mona Singh, who’s brilliant at everything, was a sheer privilege. Watching her perform is incredible, she has insane range.

Also Read – Happy Patel Khatarnak Jasoos movie review: Vir Das, Aamir Khan and Imran Khan feature in a film that’s all over the place

You were one of the first movers on OTT with Little Things, and now that it’s completing a decade, how do you view the OTT revolution? Do you feel streamers have become less risk-averse and more focused on rather generic, standard storytelling?

No, not at all. It’s just very diverse now, with so much releasing every Friday. I’m lagging behind and always trying to catch up with the releases. So much of it is binge-worthy, and there’s something for everyone. The slate has more range, and the audience now has the right to choose based on their own interests and tastes.

Mithila Palkar was amazed by the deadpan comic timing of Irrfan Khan.

The song “Chaanta Tera” is wildly imaginative, with your character constantly slapping Vir’s. The song conveys so much while also being just so entertaining. How was shooting it like?

It’s completely Vir’s zone, his stand-up brain. I love his comedy, and I’m always the audience for it. The concept of slapping him was something different because I’m not a violent person at all, and I’m slapping him throughout the film. I was very nervous, and when I had to slap him for the first time, my hand was shaking. But he told me to ‘go for it,’ and then I really went for it and laughed out of guilt. Conceptually, every time his character touches me, I slap him in the film, it’s ingrained self-defence. It’s not like my character does this for fun, or not like him, but it’s natural for her to react when someone invades her space. That has translated into the song as well.

Watch the latest episode of Cult Comebacks on Sonchiriya here:

One of your films that everyone keeps going back to is Karwaan, which was also one of the last projects of the late great Irrfan Khan and your only one with him. His character is also quite humorous. Did you make any mental notes while watching him perform?

We just enjoyed working with him, and he was having a blast. You can see it on screen as well. He was so curious on set, he was supposed to start some web show, and because he knew I come from that world, he would sit me down and ask, ‘What is the OTT space like? Who watches these shows? How’s the workflow?’ He was always so giving. And he cracked all those jokes in the film with a straight face, and I was trying my best not to laugh because he was so good. On so many occasions, I just started laughing in the take itself and would ask him, ‘How are you doing that with a straight face?’

Lastly, you are doing a comedy with Priyadarshan in Bhoot Bangla, which is in a completely different space. You’re working with comic greats like Akshay Kumar and Paresh Rawal. How has the experience been?

His films are like a genre of their own. You’ve grown up watching them, and having Akshay sir there adds to the fun. The rapport between everyone is insane, it’s a well-oiled machine, and they know each other very well. Priyan sir’s direction is very unique; he knows the entire edit in his mind and exactly what to bring out of each actor.