Acclaimed actor Kalki Koechlin recalls being "highly stressed" about her Hindi speaking skills while working on ex-husband and director Anurag Kashyap’s "Dev D". The film released in February 2009 and acquired a cult status.
Starring Abhay Deol in the titular role, "Dev D" is a modern take on Sarat Chandra Chattopadhyay's much-adapted Bengali novel "Devdas". Mahie Gill played the role of Paro in the film.
It was Koechlin's first leading role in Hindi cinema and the actor was still learning Hindi when she landed the role of Leni/ Chanda in the movie.
"My memory is of being highly stressed about Hindi. It was when I was still learning Hindi and I got a special tutor for learning all the dialogues. I didn't understand some of the dialogues but I would be able to say them in my sleep. I was just mugging them. So, it felt like a big exam," Koechlin said in an interview.
The film, which completed 15 years of its release on February 6, was the first major hit for Kashyap and all its actors earned critical acclaim for their roles. The soundtrack is considered one of the best works of Amit Trivedi's career till date with hits like "Emosanal Attyachaar", "Paayaliya", "Nayan Tarse", "Pardesi" and "Aankh Micholi".
The 41-year-old actor counts "Emosanal Attyachaar" among her favourite songs from the album.
"I went for an audition and they were like listening to the song in the office. I was like, 'Is that going to be in the film?' They said, 'Yes, probably'. And I was like, 'Okay, I have to be in this (film)," Koechlin said, adding that the film was not an overnight success but gained cult status over time.
"That album remains extra special. I sometimes still listen to that... I just love that album. And I think it really made the film. The choice of using the emotion of music to make the film was really cool."
"Emosanal Attyachaar" video featured a relatively new Nawazuddin Siddiqui as one of the performers and Koechlin remembers it being shot like it was just yesterday.
The actor, who was briefly married to Kashyap and still has a friendship with the director, said besides the gratitude that one had for "getting a job like that", the whole team was excited about what they were working on.
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Koechlin, who went on to deliver great performance in films such as "That Girl in Yellow Boots", "Shaitan", "Zindagi Na Milegi Dobara", "Shanghai", "Yeh Jawaani Hai Deewani", "Margarita With a Straw" and "Goldfish" as well as streaming shows "Sacred Games" and "Made in Heaven", said her pace has become slower than before after she welcomed her daughter Sappho with Israeli musician Guy Hershberg.
"'Goldfish' just released on Amazon. It's just that the pace is going to be different for me until my daughter is not interested in her mother anymore," said the actor.
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