Huma Qureshi on Leila's success: I don't operate from position of fear

Huma Qureshi comes across as a warm person who is content with what she has created and achieved through her hard work and passion in the Hindi film industry She gave a remarkable performance in Gangs of Wasseypur 2012 and attained a name for herself The actress blew the audiences mind with her acting chops in the recently released Netflix web series Leila Its been a week since the shows release and its still attracting positive reviews In a freewheeling chat with middaycom Huma Qureshi bares her heart about films web series and box office numbersExcerpts from the interviewWhat kind of response are you receiving for LeilaIm receiving extremely positive feedback and I am very happy that the show has generated a lot of positive conversation which is always good for any work of artWere there any kind of apprehensions before taking up this showI wasnt apprehensive It is a fictional show and a distorted world set in the future I am a huge fan of series like Black Mirror So I always saw this as an Indian version of Balck Mirror and its really exciting to do something like that and I was excited to be a part of this project The apprehension was that I knew it is going to be tough When I read the script I knew it was a physically demanding series The locations were dusty dirty and grimy So Deepa Mehta said that there is a no makeup policy on set and I would literally take 15 minutes to get ready The other apprehension was also the fear that would I be able to pull it off As the protagonist of the showIve played the leading lady in movies but Ive never had the responsibility of pulling the series on me Its also not a 2 or 3hour series its a 6hours series Its a journey about a mother wanting to find her daughter In how many ways will you express grief it can be a very repetitive emotion So that was the fear how do you find new ways to express griefWith a powerful femalecentric show how content do you feel I dont know if I feel content but I feel inspired Sometimes when you play a character you give a part of who you are but you also take something back Playing Shalini has also transformed me in certain ways Sometimes when you are portraying a scene or doing something difficult Shalini had to go through many terrible and disgusting and dehumanising things and despite that she manages to keep her humanity and dignity alive I feel that playing her has rubbed off her strength on me It sounds really strange but its true Its been a very transformative process as well for me as a person So Im just very inspired in life and feel like theres nothing that I cant doWhen you began the show did you feel connected to ShaliniI did On the surface it looks very different that shes married has a family and a child And I was discussing this with Deepa and I said If I look at my life and everything I take for granted the fact that I am a working woman pay all my bills and live alone enjoy certain freedoms and so on What if one fine day I wake up and everything is taken away from me or from anybody for that matter How would you respond I found myself not to be responding in ways very dissimilar to ShaliniView this post on InstagramA womans battle against an unjust world to find her daughter The journey premieres on 14 June only on netflix_inA post shared by Huma Qureshi iamhumaq onJun 6 2019 at 1034pm PDTIf we see your trajectory youve done diverse roles Is that a conscious move or is it the fear of being typecast here I dont operate from a position of fear Whenever I have actually operated from the position of fear I think it has never really worked out for me I always believe that you should play from the front foot I feel that even if you are out you should get out from the front foot As a performer I want to take risks I want to do all the things that other people are not doing because it excites me Its not that I am trying to make a point this is who I amDo you think Netflix has a wider reach than mainstream cinemaHundred per cent Firstly it has a wider reach in terms of numbers Secondly its also about the liberty to say what you are going to say and how you want to say it I think what happens in a conventional filmformat you have to alter the way you want to tell a story so that you fit it into the package of a commercialnoncommercial film With Netflix those boundaries are not there You can actually express yourself freely and tell the story the way it is ought to be toldIs there a dearth of stories and opportunities in the mainstream film industryTheres no dearth of stories there I think there is a dearth of money and the right money being put in there to make the right stories which come to lifeHuma Qureshi shared this picture on her Instagram accountDo you also think that there arent many opportunities for women after crossing a certain age in the Hindi film industryI feel that more and more women should be in producing and be seen as the makers of their own destiny as opposed to waiting for the phone call to ring and someone to hire you The reason why I say that is because in traditional storytelling women are always cast for how they look and how pretty they are but never about what they can bring to the table And I think the new age of storytelling that is happening even in films the focus is more about the performances and the fact that you can be the hero of your story and you dont always have to be rescuedBollywood has entirely become about the box Office numbers Does it affect you or has made you more conscious while choosing your scriptI dont understand the whole hullabaloo around the box office numbers of the film Are you going to get that money Suddenly my gatekeeper also says Arre Madam yeh film ne 100 crore kamaa li and I respond saying Oh aapko kitna mila How much did you get from that amount Instead ask Did you watch the film Did you like the film I think that has really gone out of the window I find it very amusing that in a poor country like us we are interested in knowing how much money somebody else is makingWhatever said and done box office numbers have become an integral part of the trends and does that result as an added pressure on the actors before taking up any filmI dont care about the box office numbers Its the producers problem to see how much money he has put in and how much he has to recover Its not my job as an audience or a journalist to say that the film has collected an X amount of money Box office numbers are not proof that this must be a good filmWhat other projects are you working onIm doing a film called Army of The Death which is also a Netflix filmAlso ReadLeila Web Series Review A tale of purity centre with muddled storylineCatch up on all the latest entertainment news and gossip here Also download the new midday Android and iOS apps to get latest updates