With Good Grace! - Gracy Singh

I?ve come to meet Gracy Singh! For an interview! This was the first film personality that I?m interviewing and I wonder if what I have heard about the industry and its stars is true? or just rumours. Maybe my meeting with Gracy, today, will help clear my doubts.

As I wait for the lady to appear, flashes from her films come to mind. Most prominent is the very Indian gaon ki gori (village lass) from Lagaan. My thoughts then turn to the amazingly dedicated doctor in Armaan and the glam one in Munnabhai MBBS, the immensely popular blockbuster in which she made the screen sizzle every time she appeared on it.

?Simplicity is the essence of life?, as someone has said and this quote comes to mind when I spot Gracy sauntering into the office for our little tete-a-tete. She is simplicity personified as she gives me the cue for the interview.

Excerpts from the few but simply endearing moments I spent in the company of Ms Singh.

From your teleserial Amaanat to Yahi Hai Zindagi and Wajaah, how do you look back upon on your career?
It has been a great experience and I have a come a long way from television to films. A very long way! In fact, Amaanat is just a memory today, but a very precious one. Coming to my films, very few actors are fortunate enough to debut in a film like Lagaan that will be forever remembered by viewers everywhere. The sheer canvas of the film, with its cricket theme and underlying message of overcoming one?s situation against all odds, has made it one of India?s best films. And the Oscar nomination it received, and the subsequent publicity, will be cherished by one and all who were associated with it. Including me!

The success and appreciation you got in Gangajaal and Munnabhai MBBS was tremendous. How has it helped you?
Believe me, it has given me the benefit to choose my films. Today, I have the power to choose or reject a film and still have offers pouring. This is because the industry has recognized my potential and the masses, my appeal. Today, I do a few films but they are those with women-oriented roles.

Could you describe your experience with your directors?
They are all good and talented. They have all been bold enough to experiment with scripts that required guts. A subject like Lagaan required guts to make, so did films like Gangajaal and Munnabhai MBBS.

Why do you think that well made films like Wajaah and Yahi Hai Zindagi didn?t do well?
We, actors together with the entire film unit put our heart and soul into the film. We pour our entire efforts into the process. And then sit back for the results of all that hard work. And then realize that every film has a fate. Finally, it is destiny that decides the performance of a film at the box-office.

Ashutosh Gowariker brought you with a bang with Lagaan. But he signed Gayatri Joshi for Swades, and not you. What is your take on her?
I would not like say anything for the very simple reason that it wouldn?t be fair, on my part, to comment on her. It?s a personal thing.

How was it working with Tusshar in Shart?
The film was long in the making. It took us nearly two years to complete. But I found Tusshar to be a very nice guy. Besides being good-looking he is also a very hard-working person.

You played a doctor in Munnabhai MBBS as well as in Armaan. Which is more closer to you?
I was totally focused during the making of Armaan and loved the role in Munnabhai MBBS, but the public loved the character of Dr. Suman in Munnabhai MBBS. I am idolized for this role.

Tell me about your forthcoming films?
There is Jayant Gilatar?s The White Land where I play a blind girl. It is based on a true story. Then there is Sukhwant Dhadda?s Chooriyan. I play a girl who tries to keep her family together. Finally, thre is S. Inderjit?s Chanchal. I play a dancer here and star opposite Ashish Choudhary and Sudhanshu Pandey.

Today, in with the genre of remakes hitting Bollywood, which golden oldie would you like to star in, in its remake?
Well, there are two characters and two actresses who essayed them which are close to my heart. The first is Basanti?s character in Sholay while the second is Waheeda Rehman?s in Guide.

With this, I bid farewell to this ethereal star on a very pleasant note.

? Sandeep Hattangadi