Anupria Goenka began her acting career in Bollywood with the Vidya Balan-starrer Bobby Jasoos in 2014. She went on to act in films like Tiger Zinda Hai and War. She has also appeared in popular web series like Criminal Justice, Asur: Welcome to Your Dark Side and Aashram. Excerpts from a candid conversation with her
People say you are a web queen. How do you feel?
I think I consider myself blessed to be a part of projects that have been received very well with the audiences and are strong on the content side. I had the chance of working with great directors in the process. The web has given me a lot of freedom, and it is amazing how it has become a strong medium of entertainment for people.
OTT has pushed women characters in a different way. What is your take on it?
I feel, finally we have come to a place where women characters aren’t being crafted in a unidirectional way. Either they are very vicious or bad as humans. We are in a time where we look at lead roles for women. I love it when a woman can play smart and sassy and vulnerable at the same time. It’s time where we should explore women's roles in a more layered way.
At any point, do you feel that you are being typecast in certain roles?
There are times where I feel that I am being typecast. I was offered to do a lot of professional roles like how in Criminal Justice, I was playing a lawyer, in The Final Call, I played an air hostess, in Aashram, I was a doctor, in War, I played an agent. They all have a common streak. They all are professionally oriented. At the same time, I am also playing characters that are sorted and righteous. I want to do comedy, more dark roles, rural characters, etc.
Is it challenging for you to enter the space of mainstream films despite doing Tiger Zinda Hai and War?
I don’t think it was challenging to enter mainstream cinema. Right after War, the Covid-19 pandemic happened, and a lot of offers kept getting stuck. I have gotten offers in the recent past, and a few of them have worked too, but they have been pushed. War, TZH and Padmaavat have done a lot for my career.
Do you feel that overproduction on OTT has ruined the quality of its content?
Sometimes a project is good on paper, but actors won’t allocate dates, or the budget is too small, so it does hamper the quality. I hope we will start giving time to each project and execute it the way it is written.
Also, do you feel that OTT helps uplift talented actors like you, who perhaps do well in character roles in big films?
The OTT space has been great for actors like me. I don’t think the same kind of opportunities were there 10 years back for actors like us. Since it’s teamwork, there's a lot of knowledge being accumulated. Teams are working with different creative sensibilities in shifts. It is extremely exciting.
What are your upcoming projects?
I have finished Asur 2 and have done a film with Vinay Pathak, which will be released by next year. I am doing a film from February 2022 onwards but can’t really talk about it. I am starting another web series this month.
