‘I’d Love To Romance Rekha Ma’am’

‘Romance
not
in
a
physical
manner
maybe,
but,
you
know,
where
you
are
just
sharing
dialogues
and
looking
at
each
other
and
conversations
are
happening.’
‘Rekhaji
is
has
always
been
my
favourite,
and
I
really
respect
her.’

With
his
recent
film



Laaptaa
Ladies,
directed
by
Kiran
Rao
and
produced
by
Aamir
Khan,
being
selected
as


India’s
official
entry
to
the
Oscars
2025,

Sparsh
Shrivastava‘s
career
has
taken
a
meteoric
leap.

The
film,
set
in
rural
India,
unravels
a
compelling
narrative
of
identity
and
resilience,
won
hearts
at
home
and
is
now
set
to
captivate
international
audiences.

In
this
exclusive
interview
with



Rediff.com
Contributor

Mohnish
Singh,
Sparsh
shares
his
journey
from
a
young
boy
from
television
with
big
dreams
to
starring
in
a
film
that
has
the
potential
to
bring
India
an
Oscar.

“There
were
some
emotions
that
I
had
not
tapped
before.
This
film
allowed
me
to
dig
deeper
into
those
emotions,”
he
says.

Congratulations
on
your
film

Laapataa
Ladies
being
selected
for
the
Oscars!
How
are
you
feeling
right
now?

I
am
really
happy
and
looking
forward
to
the
win.

I
am
equally
emotional.

It
feels
magical.

I
was
having
a
conversation
with
someone
(when
the
news
was
announced).
It
was
a
sort
of
a
meeting,
and
I
could
not
see
my
phone.

Then
my
phone
started
buzzing
again
and
again.

After
some
15
calls,
I
picked
it
up
and
saw
that
a
friend
was
calling,
and
he
was
like,
‘Brother,
we
are
at
the
Oscars’.
He
shouted
so
loud
that
it
actually
quite
shook
me.
I
was
a
little
numb
after
hearing
the
news.

Who
did
you
call
first
after
learning
the
news?

I
was
busy
receiving
the
calls,
so
I
didn’t
get
the
time
to
call
anyone,
but,
yeah,
when
I
got
that
gap,
I
called
Kiran
ma’am.

Actually,
I
messaged
her
because
she
is
the
one
because
of
who
the
film
is
here.

I
messaged
Aamir
sir
also.

Your
film
left
behind
Ranbir
Kapoor’s

Animal,
Kartik
Aaryan’s

Chandu
Champion,
Prabhas’s

Kalki
2898
AD,
Rajkummar
Rao’s

Shrikanth,
Vicky
Kaushal’s

Sam
Bahadur,
and
the
National
Award-winning
Malayalam
film

Aattam
in
the
competition.
How
do
you
look
at
it?

The
way
I
look
at
it
is
not
with
the
lens
that
our
film
has
left
behind
all
the
other
films.
I
look
at
it
in
a
way
that
our
film
is
able
to
represent
India
at
the
Oscars.

All
the
other
films
are
equally
good.

I
think
it’s
the
jury
who
has
a
certain
lens
to
look
at
films
and
based
on
that,
they
make
that
selection.

I
would
have
been
equally
happy
if
they
had
chosen
any
other
film.

But
what
I
can
assure
you
is
that
today
is
the
time
for
the
right
content.
The
audience
has
become
smart
and
that’s
why
films
like

Laaptaa
Ladies
happen
to
make
their
entry.

Kiran
Rao
has
a
distinctive
storytelling
style.
How
did
her
vision
for

Laapataa
Ladies
shape
your
performance
and
the
overall
atmosphere
on
set?

Yes.
She’s
also
a
very
versatile
director.
I
mean,
if
you
look
at

Dhobi
Ghat
and
then

Laapataa
Ladies,
they
are
two
different
worlds
altogether.

The
way
she
used
to
guide
me
through
the
film
was
amazing.

We
had
multiple
sittings
with
her.
I
used
to
ask
her
how
my
character
would
walk,
talk,
how
would
his
eyes
be.
She
always
mentioned
that
this
boy
is
so
innocent
that
he
cannot
think
of
doing
anything
wrong.

I
remember
that
one
instruction
that
she
gave
me
—
which
set
the
tone
for
me
—
was
that
Deepak
was
a
little
dumb,
or
maybe
he
is
not
corrupt
at
all.

Before
doing
a
scene,
we
used
to
discuss
and
rehearse.

She
is
someone
who
will
take
you
on
the
journey
of
performing
a
scene
and
then
let
you
play.

‘Now
do
what
you
want
to
do’.

She
gives
you
that
liberty.

The
atmosphere
on
set
was
really
warm.
Though
we
were
shooting
in
the
cold,
the
atmosphere
was
really
warm.

For
an
actor,
it’s
very
important
to
have
a
surrounding.
Like,
how
is
the
set
behaving
while
the
actor
is
performing
the
scene.
So
whenever
the
take
is
happening,
the
whole
set
supports
you
to
give
you
that
take,
to
give
you
that
silence. 

Which
was
your
favourite
scene?

The
scene
where
I
say
I
love
you
to
my
wife.

I
was
under
high
pressure.
Neither
my
director
nor
any
of
the
other
makers
had
said
anything
to
me.
They
gave
me
the
free
field.

But
I
was
pressurising
myself
because
I
wanted
to
make
it
look
very
different
from
all
the
other
‘I
love
yous’
that
we
have
seen
in
past
films.

I
wanted
to
make
it
look
different
and
have
a
different
impact.

So
when
I
performed
it,
I
was
under
a
pressure
of
performance.
But
then
when
I
gave
my
first
take,
it
came
out
really
well.
I
remember
seeing
Kiran
ma’am’s
face.
She
was
pretty
amazed
and
happy
to
see
that
particular
take.

I
think
she
didn’t
imagine
it
that
way.
I
still
remember
her
expression.

What
do
you
hope
international
audiences
take
away
from
the
film?

I
think
the
international
audience
can
take
over
the
smell
of
the
film.

The
type
of
beauty
it
holds,
the
type
of
message
it
says.

We
tapped
into
patriarchy,
but
we
are
also
showing
that
the
women
out
here
are
moving
forward,
and,
you
know,
taking
themselves
more
seriously.

How
has
working
on
this
project
influenced
your
growth
as
an
actor?

I
think
this
project
has
improved
my
craft
in
a
way
that
I
can’t
explain.
There
were
some
emotions
that
I
had
not
tapped
before.
This
film
allowed
me
to
dig
deeper
into
those
emotions.

Deepak
is
very
emotional,
very
innocent.
I
think
the
previous
characters
that
I
played
were
really
a
little
rugged
and
street
smart.
But
this
guy
was
a
little
dumb.

After
playing
Deepak,
I
realised,
‘Okay,
these
emotions
are
also
there
inside
me,
and
I
just
had
to
trigger
them
and
surrender
to
them’.

You
started
your
career
as
a
dancer
and
won

Chak
Dhoom
Dhoom
and
then
acted
in

Balika
Vadhu.
What
challenges
did
you
face
while
transitioning
from
television
to
film?

I
took
a
gap
of
a
year
because
I
was
also
studying.

And
I
was
bored.

I
had
done
serials,
and
I
wanted
to
jump
into
films.

So
I
thought
if
I
jump
without
taking
this
gap,
I
might
not
be
able
to
justify
the
performances
required
because
the
tone
of
a
serial
is
different
than
that
of
a
film.

So
I
took
that
one
year
gap,
which
was
a
little
daunting,
but
it
gave
me
a
few
experiences
that
are
helping
my
craft
today.

Who
are
some
actors
or
film-makers
that
inspire
you?

I
would
say
Aamir
Khan
sir,
and
I
am
not
saying
it
because
he
gave
me
an
opportunity
to
be
the
hero
of
his
film

Laapataa
Ladies.
I
am
telling
you
this
because
I
have
spent
time
with
him,
and
I
know
him
a
little
better.

He
has
the
vision.

The
way
he
looks
at
things,
the
way
he
looks
at
cinema,
the
type
of
changes
he
has
brought
in
the
Indian
cinema
is
commendable.

Like,

Lagaan
was
completely
out
of
the
box
film
at
that
point
of
time.
Making
and
taking
risks
with
such
a
film
needed
guts
and
conviction.
And
then
again,
he
did

Dangal.

In

Laapataa
Ladies,
he
took
risks
with
new
faces.

Who
is
your
favourite
actress
who
you
want
to
romance
on
the
screen?

This
might
sound
a
little
off
to
you,
but
I
mean
it
with
all
innocence
and
with
a
true
heart,
I
would
love
to
romance
Rekha
ma’am.

Romance
not
in
a
physical
manner
maybe,
but,
you
know,
where
you
are
just
sharing
dialogues
and
looking
at
each
other
and
conversations
are
happening.

Rekhaji
is
has
always
been
my
favourite,
and
I
really
respect
her.

Are
there
any
upcoming
projects
you’re
excited
about?

Yeah.
There
is
one
show
called

Dupahiya,
which
is
coming
on
Amazon
Prime
Video.