None of us knew our screen time while shooting for Soyrik, says Chhaya Kadam

When director Makarand Mane called Chhaya Kadam for a role in Soyrik, she immediately agreed. “I have been in love with Makarand as a director right from his first film Ringan (2017),” Kadam told Cinestaan.com in an interview. “To come up with something like Ringan showed how capable he is. When he called me, I instantly decided that I will do this film.”

Mane tried an unusual experiment in Soyrik. He didn’t prepare a script and simply asked his artistes to perform after giving them a situation.

“He narrated a one-liner and said it’s the role of a lady constable," said Kadam. "He told me there will be no script for this film. He said we should experiment and 'search' for this film. Normally I do want to know about my character and the film. But when Makarand called, I felt let’s try it and find something new.”

Soyrik turned out to be a different journey for Kadam and the other members of the cast because of the experimental way in which it was shot. “This journey taught me a lot," she said. "We even had fun while making the film. We did the film while facing good and challenging situations.”

About preparing for her role, Kadam said, “I stay at Kalina [in western Mumbai]. So the people I know from the police station there, I kept them before me as my models. I have met and spoken to lady constables and seen them on duty and talking to their family on matters related to home. This was how I prepared.”

The experimental nature of the shoot also meant a lot of uncertainty on the sets. “Nobody knew how much screen time each one had,” Kadam said. “We also didn’t know what will happen in the film next. If I did a scene, a fellow actor would wonder when his or her scene will take place. In a way, the film taught us to adjust to good and challenging times and go ahead as actors and as human beings.”

Soyrik stars newcomers Nitin Chavan and Manasi Bhawalkar in the lead roles. They play a couple that wishes to get married despite familial opposition.

Kadam said Chavan and Bhavalkar were newcomers only in name: “If you see their work, it seems they came with a lot of determination and homework. I have worked with a lot of new kids and my experience has always been the same. I don’t understand things like camera angle and the position of lights. But these kids knew all this."

Shashank Shende, with whom Kadam has done quite a few projects like Redu (2017) and, more recently, Nay Varan Bhaat Loncha Kon Nay Koncha (2022). is also the producer of Soyrik, but Kadam did not see any difference in him on account of the increased responsibility.

“As a human being he is so great that he is the same in whatever he does,” she said. “Working with him, I got to learn a lot, both as an artiste and as a human being. You get to learn little things like how one should be down-to-earth and honest.”

About Shende's qualities as an actor, she said, “During each take we have our own give-and-take on how to try different things. He is also concerned about his co-stars' performances. He feels it’s not enough for only his own work to be good; everybody’s work should be impressive, only then will the film benefit.” 

The countrywide lockdown due to the COVID-19 pandemic in 2020 brought the world literally to a standstill. But Kadam saw something positive in that situation. “Everything was shut. So I was able to give time to my family and near ones. We came to know them in newer ways,” she said. 

Of course, there was also the worry of what would happen in the future if the pandemic continued. “The thing about actors is that we don’t go out for work each day carrying a bag,” said Kadam. “Nobody acts in 12 films a year. Once we finish a film, we aren’t sure when the next one will come. We are required to search. It’s an unstable world. But we have opted to be here.”

Thankfully, the new normal brought new projects for her. “People started exploring different options, like shooting at a single location with fewer actors. This is how Soyrik happened," she said. "We had to shoot outside Mumbai at just one location. Irrespective of whether an actor has to work every day, he or she had to be there for 10 hours daily [because of the nature of the film],” she said.

Looking back at her career, Kadam is happy to have received appreciation from the audience. “I am lucky that the audience not only loves me as an actor but also at a personal level," she said. "At times, someone tells me that her mother likes me a lot or her daughter is a fan. So I feel that whatever we do, people who love us should like it.”

Soyrik will be released in theatres on 11 February.