WATCH! EXCLUSIVE Interview | Shefali Shah on Netflix’s Delhi Crime Season 3: ‘Lucky to be there at a time when the OTT revolution happened…’

The first thing that draws you to Shefali Shah is her expressive eyes. In an interview with Firstpost, she says how the industry used to label you as a character artist, if you don’t belong to a certain age bracket. But not anymore with the digital revolution. Delhi Crime is one of the most watched and appreciated shows on digital platforms and ‘Vartika Chaturvedi’ is one of the most respected characters.

WATCH the video Interview here:

Here is the edited excerpt from the interview:

Shefali, what do you have to say about Vartika’s relationship with Bhupendra?

I totally love Bhupendra and Vartika’s relationship and equation. Rasika Duggal too mentioned in one of her interviews we all need a Bhupendra in our lives. It is a big support and this equation is very special for me.

How much has the character of Vartika Chaturvedi evolved?

As far as Vartika is concerned, you obviously change as a person. Your emotional consistency always changes depending upon what is thrown at you. She has almost been banished from her kingdom to say the least, her place (Delhi) and her family and her team.

My character has gone through so much and I approach it differently. The case now in Delhi Crime Season 3 is completely different and she is meeting completely different people. So, things are definitely going to change, but it is very difficult for me to articulate how. There was a need for bravado in season one. But now she just has to get it done.  She has grown up and become more mature in her own way, but there’s no sense of bravado this time.

Shefali, you once mentioned that you get very emotional with the character that you are playing. Are you also emotional in real life too?

I was bawling and my makeup artist freaked out. I am a very very emotional person. I feel even the smallest things very intensely. And that’s why I react to it or express it.

What do you have to say about the digital platform that gives you the opportunity to do the roles you wish to do for years and prove yourself more as an actor?

I feel lucky to be there at a time when the OTT revolution happened. I could have spent all my life listening to one of the finest actors of the country but not translating into work. Feeling disappointed and dejected and accepting that this is it. The industry labels you as a character artist unless you are playing the hero and heroine. Once you are slotted in that category what you are left with? Nothing, right.

Also, I’m not a woman between 18-25. I’m not even 35, and I’m not even 45. So, when I did Delhi Crime , I was in my 40s and that’s a pack up time for actresses, and not just in India. When you hear interviews of Kate Blanchett or Kate Winslet or Meryl Streep, they are saying the same thing. So, Delhi Crime gives me an opportunity to play a part like this and play the lead. And that too in my 40s and nobody has done it till today.

And there are six to eight episodes to explore this person. Rajesh said something in an interview that makes a lot of sense that every character is a hero in its own space. Each person on this show is what makes its team. Madam Sir is as good as its team. She’s got the best team ever.

Is there any particular scene that you can say was the closest to your heart?

I think the last moment. Also, the first time when she meets her team, it’s not been extensively shown, but it is a big thing to come back to her team. And when she meets Khushi, I totally failed Vartika, the IPS officer because I was so overwhelmed by the actor in front of me that I cried and cried and cried.

WATCH the trailer Netflix’s Delhi Crime Season 3: