Inside out / Sonali Kulkarni

Why was she drawn to it?
"I have always liked Makrand Deshpande’s work because he does not follow a formula in his scripts or in execution. He is unpredictable, so when I got the offer, I instantly accepted."

Language is not a barrier for this Pune girl.
Sonali has worked in an English movie under an Indo-Latin production, in a Telegu movie, a Tamil film, Marathi plays and films and Hindi films. "I had no difficulty understanding or playing the role the way the director wanted. In fact, I fell in love with it." The role that of a girl whose world is limited by man, but whose journey from childhood to adulthood is filled with wonderment and curiosity about the outside world which her questioning mind reveals to her.

But wasn’t acting in Makrand Deshpande’s play a rather risky proposition because the director-actor is known to cater to the tastes of a very niche audience?
"Not at all. In fact, that’s what I like about Makrand’s works. He is willing to take risks and so do I." After reading Deshpande’s script, Sonali made up her mind to accept the role. And it turned out to be a wonderful experience, one which reminded her of the plays she did with Samanway.

What kind of reaction did she gauge from the audience?
"The audience reacted favourably to the ideas played out. They related to the very clear and straightforward play of emotions and to the power games that formed the core of the play."

And what kind of plays does she looks forward to doing?
Playing different roles with a variety of emotions excites her. In both films and theatre, Sonali has executed diverse roles, from playing a woman disguised as a man to an innocent girl who grows into a tree. "Getting monotonous or repetitive in my roles is something I consciously guard mtself against. I nurture the desire to work in comedies."

Does that mean she might even get into theatre on a full-time basis?
"No, because I don’t feel the need to. I’m as comfortable on stage as in front of the camera. Balancing the two does not hamper my style because for me, `expression’ is the key word.

But mostly not in the run-of-the-mill genre. Just as Sonali chose an `offbeat’ director to begin her foray into Hindi stage, her film career has been full of roles which are away from the mainstream: Amol Palekar’s Daayara, Prema Karanth’s Bandh Jharokhen, Dr Jabbar Patel’s Dr Ambedkar, to name a few, which have won her awards and accolades. Yet, she desires to reach out to a national audience.
"I hope that Vidhu Vinod Chopra’s Mission Kashmir, in which I play a role opposite Sanjay Dutt, will help me do that. If actresses like Tabu, Manisha, Raveena can successfully work in both mainstream and parallel cinema, so can I. I don’t want to be labelled as one kind of actor. That’s why I look forward to working in commercial films." Sonali is enthused by the prospects of young and senior directors delving into new ideas, experimenting with different issues and making mainstream cinema a more exciting place to be in.

And If she ever had to make a choice between films and theatre, which would it be?
"It is like asking me to choose between my parents. Both the media are very close to my heart and there is no way I can choose between the two passions that rule my life."

—NILANJANA SENGUPTA