Posham Pa role required me to push myself to the extreme, says Ragini Khanna

Actress Ragini Khanna underwent a drastic transformation for her next, Posham Pa, a Zee5 original film based on real-life events. Directed by Suman Mukhopadhyay, Posham Pa, a psychological thriller, stars Mahie Gill, Sayani Gupta and Khanna.

The film, written by Nimisha Misra, is based on the research of veteran journalist Praful Shah. Shivani Raghuvanshi and Imaad Shah are also part of Posham Pa's cast. Mahie Gill plays a mother who pushes her daughters, played by Khanna and Gupta, into a life of crime.

Like Gurgaon (2017), Posham Pa deals with dark themes; however, Khanna's role is a complete contrast to the one she played in the critically acclaimed Shanker Raman film.

"Preet [her character in Gurgaon] stood for supporting causes that lead towards creating a better world. But in this film, I play a character who is a victim of her circumstances. She is fearless and doesn’t believe in following the rules of the world. She believes might is right. According to her, whatever she does is right and justified, society and morals be damned!” Khanna said.

The character took the actress to some dark spaces during filming. Khanna had to struggle to make her part look real. She read criminal psychology books and drew upon films like Pulp Fiction (1994) to prepare for her role.

"The transformation was not limited to the physical one. As an actor, the role required me to push myself to the extreme and break the various mental barriers I had. To prepare for the role, I had to completely deconstruct myself and question my values, thought process, ethics and everything I believed in. It was a very scary and difficult process," she continued.

The actress is working with filmmaker Mukhopadhyay for the first time. Mukhopadhyay's first film Herbert (2006) won the National award for Best Bengali Film.

"He’s a brilliant craftsman. He has done theatre and films that have redefined various conventions. He is an actor’s director and understood me so well, which made the whole experience of shooting this film such an easy and memorable affair," Khanna said of working with the filmmaker.

Posham Pa, produced by Ten Years Younger Productions LLP, Dhirajj Walks of Art Pvt Ltd, New Born Films LLP and Vishant Audio Visuals Pvt Ltd, is due to be released online on Zee5 on 21 August.