Nushrratt Bharuccha may have become a household name with Sonu Ke Titu Ki Sweety in 2018, but her journey with director Luv Ranjan began much earlier with 2011’s Pyaar Ka Punchnama. Though these films were commercially successful and gave her considerable recognition, they’ve often been called out for being misogynistic. Now, in a candid new interview, Nushrratt says she didn’t particularly like the characters she played—but she would still do those roles again.‘Even then I was not happy, I said no to the films’In a conversation with Yuvaa, Nushrratt was asked if she felt her characters in Pyaar Ka Punchnama and Sonu Ke Titu Ki Sweety were well represented. She admitted, “Even then I was not happy. I said no to the films.” When asked if she was okay with “how the girl was represented,” the actress replied, “I have no problem with it, absolutely not. I would do it again in a heartbeat and love what I am doing.”She added that despite her initial hesitation and ongoing arguments with the filmmakers about the character motivations, she enjoyed playing Neha, Cheeku, and Sweety. “Even though all three were very far from who I am, very unrelatable to me… I had my own fight with the writers and the director—‘How do I do this? I am not convinced why she is doing this or being this way.’ That was my battle. But did I have fun doing it? I loved it.”‘It was comedy, we never said all women are like that’Addressing the backlash these films received, Nushrratt explained that they were never meant to be taken as a generalisation of women. “That was a comedy film. We showed three girls who were a certain way. We didn’t say all girls are like this,” she clarified.Interestingly, she also said that she personally did not like the films or her own characters but appreciated the experience nonetheless. “Even though I didn’t like the film, I didn’t like my character personally, I really enjoyed playing it and I would do it again because I can’t judge a character. I am not supposed to judge it,” she said. She also added that perhaps another filmmaker should make a similar film from a female perspective.
‘Girls would ask me to recite the monologue—it wasn’t a compliment’Nushrratt shared a surprising anecdote about how many women approached her to hear the now-iconic Pyaar Ka Punchnama monologue. “The number of girls that have personally said, ‘Ek baar monologue suna do.’ What will you tell them? I used to be shocked looking at the girls—‘You know this is not in your praise.’ ‘Yes yes, but please say it once,’” she recalled.The actress added that she personally wouldn’t want to hear the monologue again, but they made the film for the audience that appreciated it. “They were the ones who spent money on it,” she said.Nushrratt Bharuccha was last seen in Chhorii 2.
