Kiara: I Stepped Into The Director’s Shoes During Machine Shoot

This is your third film. How important is Machine for your career?
This film is extremely special to me. I grew up wanting to be a Hindi film heroine. The commercial aspects of a film, its songs, dances etc., I did not get a chance to do all that in my first two films (Fugly and MS Dhoni: The Untold Story) as they belonged to different genres— one was a biopic and the other was a very gritty film. When Abbas sir and Mustan sir called me and told me that they want to cast me in Machine, in my mind I was already sold! Signing this film would mean that I would not only get to live my childhood dream but also be presented as a heroine. In Abbas-Mustan’s films, a heroine is always presented so beautifully! They always give their leading ladies very powerful roles, just like Priyanka (Chopra) in Aitraaz or Kajol in Baazigar! So, I was sure of the fact that I would get to do something meaty.

So, you will not just be playing second fiddle to the male lead?
Absolutely not! That’s why I was extremely excited! Getting to work with directors like Abbas-Mustan, whose films I have grown up watching, and then being their heroine was a dream come true experience for me. I remember, when my solo poster for the film was released, I got teary! I can’t express that feeling in words!

What is your character in the film?
She is a die-hard romantic girl at heart, but externally, she is extremely powerful. The rest will automatically be revealed when you watch the film.

The poster suggests that your character has shades of grey…
Both mine and Mustafa’s characters are multi-layered. One of us will surprise you in some way with a twist!

What is the film all about?
It’s a romantic thriller. It is about two people who fall in love and then it’s a roller coaster ride like any other Abbas-Mustan film. It is not a smooth love story. It is a new age love story with a lot of twists.

We would like to hear about fun anecdotes from the sets
(Smiles) There are so many that are coming to my mind right now! I remember I had to run on a rocky hill path, for a scene. I was wearing heels. The costume did not have an extra pair of shoes. Abbas sir’s and my shoe size are the same. So he gave me his sporty keds to run and wore my pair of shoes. We also shot a video of that. I was really cute! I was like now I am in the director’s shoes, it’s a big deal!

So, you literally stepped into the director’s shoes?
(Laughs) Yes, I literally stepped into the director’s shoes! Also, during the shoot of the song Itna Tumhe, there is a portion where you see us in snow clad mountains in Georgia. The place where the song was being shot, a very small part of the unit could actually travel till there. The rest of the unit could not accompany us. It was a snow-capped mountain. Because it was a limited crew, we could not even take our hair stylist, makeup artiste etc. It was very cold! I remember Abbas sir holding the umbrella, Mustan sir holding the mirror and Mustafa and I doing each other’s touch up. Mustan sir made chai for all of us. It was so cold that Mustafa and I were almost freezing. It was minus something degrees for sure. It was just 7-8 of us shooting there. I went completely numb, couldn’t even feel my legs. I actually took the chai and poured it on my feet. It was so cold up there and there was no hot water, we only had chai and it came to my rescue. But I think this is the fun of shooting! I will always remember Machine for this fun shooting experience.

Would you like to recall a scene from the film which touched your heart?
Does it have to be only my scene or anybody else’s?
It can be anybody’s

There is a scene performed by Mustafa in the climax of the film. I remember when he did it on the set, every single person had tears in their eyes. After he finished the scene, each one of us congratulated him as if he has won some award. It (the scene) is such a crucial moment in the film. I don’t think any of us anticipated it to come out the way he performed! It’s very inspiring to see someone, who is a newcomer, to be so comfortable and confident in front of the camera!

So, what next after Machine?
I am reading stuff but have not locked anything as yet, so I can’t say that right now.

Any filmmaker or actor you want to work with?
So many! Ranveer Singh tops the list of actors who I want to work with. He is one of my favourite actors. I have grown up loving actresses like Madhuri Dixit, Sridevi, Kajol and Kareena Kapoor to name a few. These are the ladies who have inspired me to dream of becoming an actress conclude Machine movie’s heroine.