There’s no stopping Kalki Koechlin

Kalki Koechlin, who made her Bollywood debut with Dev D, has come a long way. While initially Bollywood and Indian cinema found it difficult to slot Kalki’s Caucasian look, both, the actress and the Indian movie industry seem to have made peace with it. Kalki is also making her presence felt in theatre and make her voice her about social/feminist issues. Her latest film A Death In the Gunj has just been released to tremendous ovation at the Toronto Film Festival. In a candid chat, Kalki talks to us about her film, her travel show and upcoming projects.

Konkona Sen Sharma’s directorial debut A Death In the Gunj was very well received at the Toronto Film Festival Yes, I am very happy about that. I wanted to be in Toronto for the screening but I was told very late about it. By then, I had other engagements. But I am happy for Konkona. We shot the film in Jharkhand, which is a four-hour drive from Ranchi. Logistically it was tough for Konkona to cart the entire crew to Jharkhand. But she insisted on it since the location in the script matched Jharkhand.

How did the crew manage in the wilderness Initially we stayed in Ranchi and drove down to the location. We’d travel four hours every day and it was exhausting. We then shifted to the location and stayed in local homes.

You have worked with female directors before. How different is it from working with male directors Yes, I’ve worked with Shonali Bose in Margarita With a Straw and Zoya Akhtar in Zindagi Na Milegi Dobaara. Gender definitely doesn’t play a part. But yes, each of my female directors has pronounced personality traits. Zoya is like one of the boys: boisterous. Koko (Kokona) is quiet but she knows exactly what she wants from each actor.

When does A Death In the Gunj release in India It will be released soon. They want to create a buzz before release. I haven’t seen the film yet. In fact, they completed the film just a few days before it was taken to Toronto. They left in a mad rush.

You recently took an amazing road trip with your dad Joel Koechlin for a travel show It was quite an experience travelling all across the Northeast. You know, I always felt close to my dad. But I share a strange relationship with him. My parents separated when I was a child. I met my father only on weekends and special occasions. Our meetings were sporadic but whenever we met, we had fun. He is a nature photographer. It was thrilling to go trekking with him.

So who came up with the idea of doing a travel show Initially my Dad did. He said, ‘Listen, we haven’t travelled for years. The last time we went together was to Gulmarg four years ago.’ He wanted us to travel to the Northeast because we had never been to that part of the world. I then thought of making our trip into a show.

What are you shooting for currently It’s a film called Ribbon. It’s directed by Rakhi Shandilya, another female director. It’s her first feature. Sumeet Vyas from the series Permanent Roommates is my co-star.