Yet to emerge from Gangubai's character, says Alia Bhatt

Alia Bhatt is returning to the big screen after almost three years in the titular role in Sanjay Leela Bhansali's biographical crime drama Gangubai Kathiawadi, which is loosely based on the life of a real-life sex worker who rose to become a celebrated madam of her brothel in Mumbai's Kamathipura red-light district.

Bhatt, who had to learn the Kathiawadi dialect for the film, believes this has been her toughest role till now. "Before this I had played tough roles in films like Highway (2015) and Udta Punjab (2016), but the thing which made this role toughest for me was that while keeping it intense and authentic, I had to also make sure it's entertaining. Because at the end of the day it's a commercial film. So we had to make sure the audience would also enjoy the film as well as speak about the performance."

Bhatt found Gangubai to be mentally taxing and said she has still not been able to disconnect herself from the character even after filming ended.

"I'm yet to come out of this Gangubai's character," she said as a media interaction on Saturday. "The thing is, I had to shoot this film for more than two years, so I had to hold this character close to me for a long  time. Even while sitting at home during the lockdowns, I had to keep this character alive within me because we didn't know when we would get a call to begin shooting again. So I had to be mentally prepared.

"After completing the shoot, I had to dub for the film. And I dubbed for like a couple of months. So in a way that character is still with me, it has not left yet. Only when the film is released, you can let the character go. Till then, it's within you."

Helmed by Sanjay Leela Bhansali, Gangubai Kathiawadi is set to be released in theatres on 25 February.