Anjana Sukhani Compares Her Main Vaapas Aaunga Character With Jab We Met's Geet: 'No Filter'

Main Vaapas Aaunga actor Anjana Sukhani has opened up about her character Meher, drawing parallels with Kareena Kapoor's iconic Geet from Jab We Met. Speaking about the similarities, the actor explained how both characters share an unfiltered personality and innocence that defines their charm on screen.

Sukhani, who played Meher - Naseeruddin Shah's daughter-in-law in the film - said audiences have begun noticing the resemblance between the two characters over time.

She told NDTV, "The parallels that I was drawing, that actually now people are like, 'Yeah, that's true, that her character is very much like Geet in Jab We Met.' Very unfiltered person. She doesn't know what she's saying. There's no malice in her heart, she's saying wrong things at the wrong place, but with no evil in her heart. So I guess it's basically the innocence of Meher that reflects beautifully on screen. And all my friends and family have loved it."

Elaborating further on Meher's personality, she added, "She has no filter at all. She's funny, so even when you see the lines that she says with such a straight face, she doesn't mean anything negative while she's saying it. She's just saying it because it's coming to her mind."

Anjana added, "Okay, I need to say this now. And I said this earlier also, that his (Imtiaz Ali's) women are very mature, but they also have a very beautiful childlike quality in them. So, quality-wise, whether it was Geet then or whether it is Jia's character (Sharvari), she also has this maturity and yet a childlike quality in her, and so does Meher. Her character is also like that. Even though, yes, of course, there's an age gap between the characters, their women always show that sweet, childish side of them in the film. I think that's beautiful."

Sukhani also recalled her early interaction with filmmaker Imtiaz Ali, revealing that she had met him for Jab We Met but did not audition for the project at the time.

Anjana as Meher with director Imtiaz Ali.

"I met him for Jab We Met; I didn't audition for it. I think at that time Bobby (Bobby Deol) was also reading the script. It's long ago. I met them... but yeah, it's all destiny."

Reflecting on finally working with the director, she expressed gratitude and admiration for his storytelling.

"I was definitely destined to work with him. I'm fortunate, I would say that. How many actors can really say in their lifetime that they did an Imtiaz Ali film? I'm just extremely, extremely fortunate that I got to work with him. Because he creates poetry in motion in every film. Everything that he picks is poetry. And to be part of that poetry and that pain - I think, what more can an artist ask for? So I just feel that, yeah, things happen at the right time, in the right place, for the right film... so no complaints."

Describing Imtiaz Ali's approach to filmmaking, Sukhani said the director treats everyone on set equally, regardless of their stature.

"Imtiaz... he makes you feel seen. He treats you as a human - not based on stature, whether you're a big actor, a small actor, a character actor, or a spot boy - anybody. I think that's his most beautiful quality: he sees people as they are, not their status. Just observing him is like learning so much for me as a person. Even on set, the way he is - he's so calm. He doesn't get riled up very easily. I don't think he actually gets riled up. He's always in zen mode."

She also spoke about a particular scene with Naseeruddin Shah that she initially found challenging and how Imtiaz Ali helped her navigate it.

Recalling the moment, she said, "I think it's pretty much the first or the second scene in the film where Naseer sir is getting off the stairs, and it had to be very sweet; it had to be a little taunting; it had to be a little maska lagana (buttering up), like, you're warming up, you're buttering him up."

She added, "So there were too many things that you had to keep in mind when I had to do that scene. It's a very simple scene; it's not very complicated, but when you try to put two or three emotions together at the same time, it can get a bit overwhelming. And I feel I had a little bit of a challenge getting that note right."

Sukhani mentioned that Imtiaz Ali ensured she achieved the exact emotional tone he wanted, all while maintaining a calm and supportive environment on set.

"But then again, with Imtiaz, until you get it right, he's not going to leave you. (Laughs) So he made sure that I do it the way he wants it exactly. He just guides very beautifully, so there's no way that you will not deliver the way he wants you to deliver."

She continued, "And he's so focused on what he wants that until he gets that, he'll very softly push the actor to do better, of course, to get what he wants out of the actor. It's never been, 'Hey, you're not getting it! Hey, you know, no, this is not working out!' It's never been like that. It's always, 'Okay, do one more. Okay, now try this. Okay, now try...' So he's always suggesting very softly and making sure that the actor is not frazzled."

Speaking about managing nerves on set, she added, "Because you obviously sometimes can get nervous performing to a director's expectations of you, and then you can get a bit hassled. But I think he just puts you in such a soft space that you don't feel that. You feel like, 'Okay, I can do better, I can do a better one than this one.'"

She also shed light on how the director helped her refine her performance, particularly when it came to pacing and dialogue delivery.

"He was like, 'Listen, take your time. Take your space. Don't rush into saying the line, even if the character is very rushed.'"

"So there are so many small, little things that I learned, like you can be a rushed person, but you don't have to talk in a rushed way. He was like, 'No, your body language should be rushed, but when you're talking, it should not be rushed.' So even to understand that... (laughs) I was like, 'Okay.'"

She concluded by recalling how Imtiaz Ali would often sit with her between shoots to work through scenes in detail.

"Then he would sit and read with me even in between the shoots sometimes, like, 'Okay, you know, let's do this scene, let's read this a little bit, and see how you are facing it.' So he was very, very comforting that way."

Main Vaapas Aaunga was released in theatres on June 12.

Also Read: How Imtiaz Ali's Main Vaapas Aaunga Became A Film For Every Generation