Bollywood actress Kalki Koechlin, who plays the social media-savvy Tara Kapoor in Waiting, warns us about the virtual world taking over our lives.
“We have become social media [expletive]. Everything we say is projected like a big statement … sometimes I consciously switch off my phone to get off that. Otherwise, it’s a constant infiltration of people and their opinions,” said Koechlin.
In Waiting, directed by Anu Menon, which was screened at Dubai International Film Festival (Diff), Koechlin’s character’s life is shattered when her husband meets with a near-fatal accident. He’s in a coma and she finds an unlikely friend in the 64-year-old Shiv Nataraj (Shah) at the hospital. Both are waiting for their partners to get better.
“Tara is this girl from Bombay who’s on top of everything, be it social media or anything. But when she’s stuck in the hospital in the middle of nowhere, she realises that her 500 friends on Facebook cannot help her at that time,” said Koechlin.
Koechlin said what she loved about the film was its vibe. “I liked Anu when I first met her. I knew that Waiting came from a personal space … she would keep giving the reference of Lost In Translation where two people find comfort in each other.” She accepted the project a year before Shah gave his go-ahead.
“Waiting involved a lot of waiting … The toughest part about my role was to find the character. We kept writing and rewriting her as Tara was based on Anu somehow,” said Koechlin.
The actress has had a busy year; she signed up for Konkona Sen Sharma’s directorial debut and directed her own play.
“I directed my first play this year and suddenly, I felt like actors are the most difficult breed on this planet,” said Koechlin.
Don’t miss it
Waiting will be screened at 9.15pm on Saturday, December 12, at the Mall of the Emirates. For tickets, go to dubaifilmfest.com
