Rituparno has a beautiful mind: Riya

Finally, Tollywood gets to feel your presence. What kept you waiting for so long?
I guess the right kind of role. I’m extremely choosy about the characters I essay. Though flooded with Tollywood offers, I felt this venture topped the charts.Riya Sen tops the glam calendar. But this venture has you facing the camera in your deglam avatar...And this isn’t my first such role. I have done the same for Santosh Sivan ventures.

Was it the character or the man behind the camera that got your nod for the film?
In this case, it’s only the director who mattered. When Rituparno Ghosh called me up and offered me a role in Abohoman, I agreed without even being aware of my role. I didn’t even hear the script. Just a few days back when I came down to Kolkata for the film shoot, I directly headed to the sets from the airport. I had a 20-minute briefing and a short discussion before I faced the camera.

How’s the experience been so far?
Fantastic. I loved every moment we shot for the film. But I must add that the first day of shoot got off to a rough start as I was clueless about what was expected of me. But things started looking up from the second day onwards, so much so, that we ended up hugging each other every time there was a great shot. Rituparno’s beautiful mind makes the man a creative genius. I would love to be a part of a Rituparno venture in future.

Could you elaborate on your character in Abohoman?
I play a young housewife who’s expecting. She is a rebel in the house and suffers from frequent mood swings.

Is she similar to the off screen Riya Sen?
A little bit, yes.

With new pairings being the flavour of the season in Tollywood, how do you expect the Riya-Jisshu pairing to score?
Jisshu and I look good on screen. Jisshu is a very good friend. I know him for eight years. We used to model together.

Would you be interested in a commercial Bengali flick?
I really don’t know. It will depend on a lot of factors.

How’s your Bollywood fare coming along?
There’s a comedy by Karan Choudhary called Tara Sitara where I’m cast opposite a fresher. Then there’s Love Khichdi b y Srinivas Bhashyam, Samir Karnik’s Heroes and a venture by Girish. The last one is a children’s film where I play a Maharashtrian constructor. While dubbing for the role I’m planning on some voice modulation. Then there is a Subhash Ghai production directed by Paritosh Painter who was also the writer for Dhamaal. There’s a Telugu film by Ajay Shastri where I had to essay a character with a negative streak.

Finally, how good is Riya in dealing with rumours?
I don’t pay much attention to them. The irrelevant gossips don’t stop me from being who I am.