Rajma Chawal actors Amyra Dastur, Anirudh Tanwar on learning from Rishi Kapoor, and scoring a Netflix release

Pilot-turned-actor Anirudh Tanwar makes his on-screen debut with Netflix’s latest Indian original film, Rajma Chawal that hit the platform on 30 November. The movie is based on father-son dynamic and explores the generation gap where Rishi Kapoor, as a father, attempts to reconnect with his estranged son Kabir (played by Tanwar) by creating a fake profile on social media. Tanwar was intimidated and nervous while working with the legendary actor but he says he took the opportunity to soak in as much as he could by being around Kapoor. “Before we started shooting, I was scared thinking about what he would say - ‘What he if thinks I am a bad actor?’ I had to shout at him on the very first day of my shoot and that was making me more nervous. I had never met him before and I wondered, ‘What if he yells back at me?’ But it went off well. I would follow him for every scene. Between the shots we’d have normal chats about life, and that was helpful for me. I realised that he speaks his mind. He is so unfiltered,” said Tanwar. [caption id=“attachment_5487461” align=“alignnone” width=“825”]  Rajma Chawal. Image via Facebook[/caption] Interestingly, Kapoor, who is quite well-versed with social media in real life, is shown learning the ropes of it from his on-screen family, and Tanwar’s nervousness also stemmed from the fact that he wasn’t quite familiar with social media due to his aversion towards it. “It was very funny that on sets, if I had to post something on social media, Mr Kapoor would help me out. In real life, I have been quite averse to it. I feel you over-indulge and see information which is not required. I also feel you enter lives of people you don’t have any connection with,” he said. The film also features Amyra Dastur who also managed to break the ice with Kapoor immediately. “Most of my scenes are with Rishi Kapoor. There are a lot of fights between us and I am often screaming at him. I play a hairdresser who helps Rishi’s character to reconnect with his son. I was very nervous initially but I got an opportunity to talk to him before the shoot began. He started calling me ‘bawi’ and I could call him a friend,” said Dastur, who is thrilled about the film’s shift to digital media. “I am really happy that the film has released on Netflix Global which covers 190 countries and has approximately 130 million viewers. This way, we don’t get stressed about box office collection and first Friday figures, so you don’t judge your film based on that. Had it been a theatrical release, it would have probably got lost over the weekend. It is such a sweet and family-oriented film. People were talking about Badhaai Ho crossing Rs 100 crore, but why don’t they just say that the film is very good,” said Dastur. “We only talk money. I doubt if we would have got so many viewers had it been a regular theatrical release,” added Tanwar. Dastur says Rajma Chawal came to her at a very critical juncture in her career. “This film was offered to me when I had given up on my career. It helped me believe in myself as an actor again,” said the actress, who is also a part of Rajkummar Rao and Kangana Ranaut’s Mental Hai Kya, and Made In China, again with Rao. “This is what I wanted from my life and it is actually because of Rajma Chawal. Leena (Yadav, director) just sparked the fire,” she said. Tanwar could relate to the film and his character completely, so it wasn’t a major challenge for him to play the part. “It looked so real. Most of us experience father-son issues or have observed them. Either you are misunderstood, or you misunderstand someone who you love and the only solution is to go and address it. If you don’t, the communication breaks, and the film shows just that. The film also brings that nostalgic feel which has not been seen for very long - relationships with neighbours, cousins…” said Tanwar. “I also had to learn to play the guitar, sing, ride a bike and be active on social media." Talking about working with Yadav, the actors said her directorial process was very simple. “Leena maybe very strict and tyrannical in her approach but she doesn’t direct; she just sits and chats with you for hours. She wants to bring the character out. Subconsciously, she puts the character into us. So when we would go for the shot, she would ask us to do what we wished to. There is no process, no tricks; we just understood the character’s fears and strengths.,” said the actors in unison.