Bharti is back to the Vaishnav house in Sanskaar, and this time she is determined to get her due from the family. Bharti also has a new face, Supriya Kumari, and we talked to her about stepping into the shoes of this character

Q: Hi Supriya, what prompted you to take up the role of Bharti?

Supriya: The makers of the show were looking for someone who has an innocent face, which does not show what she’s up to, and they found me right for the role. When I was approached, I thought that the greyness of the character will give me a lot of scope to act and explore many emotions, which we always look for as actors. So I took it up.

Q: Did you have any doubts about playing a character that was essayed by another actress first?

Supriya: Yashashree (the former Bharti) is a great actress and she played the role very well. I will play Bharti in my own way. As a character, she is the same so there are bound to be similarities in the way we have portrayed Bharti. But as actors, we are completely different, so there is also bound to be a lot of difference in how Bharti will be seen now. 

Q: Negative characters in television are generally over the top. Is that how Bharti will be seen now?

Supriya: No! I have decided not to overplay the character’s grey side. I had a discussion with my director too and agreed that Bharti will be an underplayed character. In any case, she is a simple girl so I can’t have loud make up and bindis to show the bad side of Bharti. I’ll try to show her vengeful side with my acting and not by overacting. Also, I think Bharti is not totally negative, and she has become the way she is because of all that she has gone through, and is now back to get her due.

Q: What did you do in the breaks that you had between your acting assignments?

Supriya: After my first show Bairi Piya, I did shows like Looteri Dulhan and Bhaagowali, which were good experiences. I also did a movie called Zindagi 50/50 with Rajpal Yadav which released in May this year. Apart from that, I also spent time with my family, something that I miss out on when I’m working. I also watched a lot of good movies and shows, because I firmly believe that we learn from watching good things, and I’d like to believe that I have improved.

Q: Coming back to Sanskaar, have you met the cast of the show? What are your impressions about them?

Supriya: It is a great team to work with, as the whole production team, direction team and the actors are all very sweet. I had gone to the sets for my look test for the first time, and I hadn’t eaten lunch as I didn’t get time because the look test took all day. While leaving, I went up to the cast to say hello, and after talking to me they asked me if I had eaten. And when I said no, they made me sit with them and ate with me! I really liked the warmth that they showed me. All the actors- Arunaji, Jay Soni, Shamin, Sonaliji are very good and I don’t feel like I’m new to the team.

Q: What is the response you’re expecting for this role of Bharti?

Supriya: After my entry on the show, the responses have already started coming in on social networking sites, and all of them have been positive. Honestly, when this role was offered to me, some people told me not to play a grey character as it would be difficult to get lead roles later. But I was confident that the audience would accept me and not think bad about me for being negative. I took this up as a challenge and I’m happy that I did. Another reason for me to accept it was because Colors had offered me my first main lead in Bairi Piya, so I have a special relationship with the channel. I know they can’t do anything wrong for me, so there was no reason not to say yes.

Q: So what will be Bharti’s next move in the show?

Supriya: I will have lots to do in the show, which is why I’m so excited to play the role. Bharti is badly affected by all the bad things that have happened to her, and is now back to take revenge. She will try to create differences between Kishan and Bhoomi while pretending to be sweet to the family. But her biggest grouse is against Ansu Baa, who broke her promise of getting her married to Kishan. So her hatred for Baa will make her do bad things for the family.

What do you think of Supriya’s entry into the show as Bharti? Tell us in the comments section below!