Vikrant Massey has an incredible portfolio of work in the television industry, he has since been following up his acting prowess on the big screen with supporting roles in films such as Lootera, Dil Dhadakne Do, Half Girlfriend to lead roles in the critically acclaimed A Death in the Gunj, Deepika Padukone’s Chhapaak and more recently Haseen Dilruba. This versatile actor has shown his depth as an actor in the variety of roles he has performed. Now he is bringing to us another performance in Zee5’s ‘14 Phere’, which also stars Kriti Kharbanda, who is very well known in Telugu cinema and has many awards to her credit. Since starring in her first Hindi film Raaz: Reboot in 2016, Kriti has really become a hot favourite even in Hindi cinema, with popular films such as Guest iin London, Shaadi Mein Zaroor Aana, Housefull 4 and Pagalpanti to her name. So, what happens when Kriti and Vikrant come together? Well apart from making such a cute couple, they make for a great conversation. Here’s our chat with the duo on their recent outing – 14 Phere
What attracted you to do this film because it’s a very unconventional script?
Kriti Kharbanda: For me the excitement was that it’s extremely unconventional and hasn’t been done before. Normally when you are dealing with a subject like this the film can turn out to be a little serious and preachy. I love that matters that are serious are being dealt with in such a light-hearted way. There was humanity in it, there was relatability in it. There’s resonation in that – that’s what appeals to me about it. And more than that it’s the characters Sanjay and Aditi who are so flawed in so many ways. Yet so loveable and so human. Playing a real character on screen is a very big challenge.
Many guys and girls out there are going to turn around and say we are like Sanjay, or we are like Aditi. To do justice to that is always a challenge, so for me the excitement of doing this project is where you are dealing with something serious, but you can have fun with it.
Vikrant: Absolutely, I agree with Kriti. We’ve been saying this the unconventionality of the script was something that appealed to both of us at first go. Very seldom do you come across such intelligent scripts as she [Kriti] put it so rightly. They are dealing with issues that are for the lack of a better word serious. But they are dealt with so much humour, so much of love – handled with kid gloves if I may say so and I immediately wanted to be a part of it. And here we are getting to hear great things about the film, so really excited.
You’re right it’s a very serious topic which the film touches on – honour killings, caste system and it’s not just in India we see cases, but here in the UK too. So, what would you say is the intention of the film? What is it trying to say to its audiences?
Vikrant: I think to begin with to keep things simple without complicating things too much, this is an out and out family entertainer. Cinema has always reflected society or any art form for that matter of fact. The beauty of cinema today is, especially the audiences because of the advent of OTT platforms. Our exposure has grown ten folds today. So today we are communicating with the world in on go. For example, 14 Phere is catering to 190 countries in one go. It’s so comforting to know that there are similar things happening in the UK and world over and there will be resonance about things that we are talking about here in India. We want to entertain audiences. The story is about the people who want to be together, but at the same time, whether it is caste system, honour killing, dowry or whether it is about two people wanting to be together but cannot be together for X,Y,Zee reasons, in any age and time where we claim to be developed, where we claim to have reached Mars, we are still sort of native in so many ways. It’s the border line hypocrisy that is kind of falling. Not that we want to go out there and preach people, as both of us have been saying. We do give our audiences the benefit of doubt that they are really intelligent, they are far more exposed than they were say ten years ago. So, the takeaways we have left for you, they are for you to make your own. It’s for you to see it the way you deem right.
Kriti: For me 14 Phere is a celebration, while we are dealing with some very sensitive issues, I think one way to look at it when you talk about 14 Phere, you know in a typical Indian wedding there are seven phere (circles) that happen which mark the seven vows, which husband and wife take together. For me 14 Phere is not about weddings for me it’s about celebrating each other’s cultures, celebrating each other’s traditions, and making it your own. Especially in India – caste marriage I think is very important to realise that each one is coming from their own place, coming with their dreams and aspirations. And here I will talk just about the bride and groom and their respective families, not the rest of the people at the wedding. So if I am a Punjabi girl marrying someone, who is a different caste, I would want to get married my way because I have dreamt of being that bride and he may have his own dream and aspirations and so I think it’s not about choosing which one do we go for, but it’s about celebrating each other’s cultural differences and accepting each other and saying I would love to be a part of your world and I would love you to be a part of my world. Our primary focus is just entertaining our audiences and showing that it is possible to celebrate one another and co-exist.
To check out the full interview watch on:
