Sania Mirza’s reaction when Riteish Deshmukh told her ‘I’m playing you’: ‘I don’t look this manly’

Riteish on playing a woman on screen

Riteish admitted playing a woman on screen came with its own set of challenges. “It was very difficult for two reasons. First, none of my contemporaries were attempting something like this at the time. Second, a man portraying a woman on screen is obviously not the most appealing sight. On top of that, my father was then the chief minister, so I was also thinking about how it would be received, given that he was a public figure. It made the role even more challenging.”

ALSO READ: Why Dhurandhar 2 ditched Netflix for JioHotstar in a massive streaming shake-up, switched music to T-Series

Getting waxed for the role

Riteish then revealed Genelia Deshmukh was his go-to for advice for the character . “I was constantly in touch with Genelia about what to do and what not to do. I even went a bit overboard – I did waxing and threading as part of method acting. It was the most painful experience, and my hair actually stopped growing for a while,” he joked. “But when you see audiences laughing in theatres, that’s the ultimate gratification. That’s what makes it all worth it.”

Genelia praised her husband’s performance: “I don’t think anybody could have done it better than he did.”

Riteish’s first day on the set playing a woman

Riteish also shared how nervous he was on the first day of the shoot. “The first time I got ready, it took me 2–3 hours. As I walked from the van to the set, I kept my umbrella low because I didn’t know how to face anyone. Anupam Kher and Chunky Pandey were there and they made me feel so comfortable. That was the most nervous I’ve ever been on set,” he revealed.

He added, “Particularly in comedy films, while audiences watch the screen, we watch the audience. The laughter, the noise from the seats when audiences move as they laugh, that’s what tells you if a scene is working. Hearing that sound was such a thrill, it made all the pain and preparation worth it.”

Apna Sapna Money Money, the 2006 Bollywood comedy, follows a cast of characters on a madcap chase for wealth. The film stars Riteish Deshmukh alongside Suniel Shetty, Shreyas Talpade, Celina Jaitly, Koena Mitra, and Jackie Shroff.