Priyasha Bhardwaj Opens Up On Filming Intense Action Scenes In ‘Saas Bahu Aur Flamingo’

New Delhi: Actress Priyasha Bhardwaj who is best known for her work in shows like ‘Aarya’, ‘Mirzapur 2’, ‘Kaafir’, ‘Love J Action’ and ‘Call My Agent Bollywood’ is all set to feature in web series ‘Saas Bahu Aur Flamingo’ helmed by director Homi Adajania which will release on 5th May on Disney Hotstar. The actress got candid about her role and how she prepped for intense action as well as intimate scenes. 

Priyasha said, "I am playing “Young Savitri”. Basically the ‘Saas’ in Saas, Bahu Aur Flamingo, when she was younger. My role plays a key part in creating the world of #SBF. It’s where it all started. Like how in the cult film, Godfather 2 of the Godfather Trilogy, we see Robert De Niro portraying Vito Corleone when he was younger. And Savitri is portrayed by the legendary Dimple Kapadia." 

Spilling beans about how she prepared for Savitri, she said, "On our first meeting itself, Homi sat me down and spend 2 hours animatedly explaining the entire world of Savitri and took the time to learn about my background and my acting process. He was warm, energetic and open-hearted. He carefully cautioned me saying that my scenes were the backbone of the show. And not just the first season but the other seasons as well. That was a lot of pressure but I was 100 percent ready to do whatever it took to bring my director’s vision to life. Homi is the most collaborative director I have ever worked with. We had a lot of intense action sequences as well as intimate scenes that needed careful choreography and preparation. We also had Aastha Arora as the intimacy coordinator on set. Before we started shooting, I worked on my physical stamina, was on a strict diet, and worked on inner strength with healing and meditation. Almost 90% of my shoot happened in the outskirts of Jaipur in extreme winters. Physical fitness was a prerequisite for this character along with an emotional range." 

Sharing about how she bagged the role, she told,"The casting director Anmol Ahuja of Casting Bay and his team were looking for an actor who resembled Dimple Kapadia in her 20s and 30s. I was given 2 audition scenes and I was told to dress up in ethnic Banjaran attire. Thanks to my roots in Rajasthan, I had a sense of not just the way we dress, but also the body language and dialect. Took 2 days to prep for the audition. It was a rainy day in the month of July 2021, when I went to Casting Bay’s office to give this audition. In September 2021, I got a call back to say I have been creatively locked and that is how it all started." 

Describing her working experience in the show she further saidsays, "I was most excited to meet Dimple Kapadia as I have grown up admiring her work to now playing her younger version. Not only is she a gorgeous looker, she is also a gem of a person. We used to rehearse our scenes together since we had to maintain our dialect, accent and tone of speaking besides developing the character’s gestures, body language and personality. She is like an excited child on set, willing to take risks and ready to take up any challenge. I learnt so much from her. I also have a very intense scene with Deepak Dobriyal which involved an action sequence. Our director Homi Adajania didn’t allow us to meet until we shot the scene to create natural tension and drama. So when we met for the first time, we met as Monk (Deepak Dobriyal’s character) and Savitri. It was absolutely thrilling to shoot with him. He would do something different in each take which was nerve wracking but a crazy learning experience."