Why Kalki Signed Ek Thi Daayan?

She may or may not be the ‘daayan’ in ‘Ek Thi Daayan‘. However her sense of humour stops her from getting overtly serious while describing her role in the forthcoming film. Kalki Koechlin, who will be seen with Emraan Hashmi in ETD, is working with Ekta Kapoor and Vishal Bhardwaj for the first time.

While Ekta’s success record over the years has been fantastic, for Kalki even Vishal was a major reason to step into the surreal world of ‘Ek Thi Daayan’.

“I am a big fan of Vishal ji. I love his sensibilities when it comes to music and art. There was no reason why I had to carry any doubts. Moreover, Kannan (Iyer) Sir is a fantastic writer and director while no one can beat Ekta when it comes to marketing. I guess it was just a combination of everything that made me step into the film.”

However didn’t the fate of his last, ‘Matru Ki Bijlee Ka Mandola’ deter him? After all, the filmmaker has himself admitted that there was a segment of audience which absolutely hated the film.

“Come on, he tends to produce a lot of interesting work. I like his sensibilities. As a matter of fact, I actually liked ‘Matru Ki Bijlee….’. I spoke to Vishal about it as well. The film had several moments of brilliance. I understand that the film was carrying a very dry kind of humour which we don’t see very often in Indian cinema. Reason being that we don’t spoof ourselves very often and especially don’t have a sense of humour about ourselves.”

Terming the film as a farcical yet intelligent comedy that deserved to work, Kalki adds, “Here was this film which was ripping nothing less than our Government as well as culture. Moreover, it took the lid away bout projecting the system as is and how things are not really functioning around us. I personally felt really sad when the film didn’t work; it deserved a much better fate.”

Perhaps she could well reserve her desires for ‘Ek Thi Daayan’, which is due for a release. Does she indeed see the film covering a major distance?

“Yes I do,” says Kalki in a confident tone. “I am very excited about the film as it is a suspenseful thriller. I hadn’t experimented with this genre ever. Good that I did it because every actor in the film is so strong. They have all given fabulous performances as well. It’s going to be a real treat for the audience!”

Joginder Tuteja tweets @tutejajoginder