Isha Talwar: Oye! bubbly

It is like opening a bottle of soda! Isha Talwars effervescence is contagious — she is quite simply bubbling with joy. It is in keeping with her resolution for 2017 which is simple — to be happy! As part of that resolution, Isha took time off from her busy career to spend her New Year at a retreat for 10 days, far from the prying eyes. She switched off her phone and went offline for those 10 days before joining the sets of her Bollywood film.

Though she is busy with modelling and her film career across the Southern Industry and Bollywood, Isha has not neglected the industry that launched her to stardom. Busy with two Bollywood projects, she has still found time to act in Malayalam films and even come down to Kerala to give Kathak performances. Isha will be playing the lead role of a Bharatanatyam dancer Maya in the segment Mudra directed by Alberrt of the portmanteau titled Crossroad, an anthology of 10 stories on issues Kerala women face.

A trained Kathak dancer, Isha had to undergo training to pick up the steps of Bharatanatyam for Mudra. She says, “Every dance form has its own essence and beauty. Even though I know dancing, I had to adapt to this dance form which was relatively easy considering my background in Kathak.” She is happy that she got to show off her dancing prowess on screen. Not that we had any doubt after seeing her dance moves on stage. After doing a slew of special appearances in recent Malayalam films, Isha is happy that she is getting to play the lead in Mudra.

Acting in Malayalam films has been a pleasure, she adds, revealing that it was her Bollywood projects that had her on her toes for the past few months. She mentions, “I have a soft spot for Malayalam films and Kerala has grown on me. Whenever I come to Kerala, I switch on my experiment mode and try out different cuisines. Initially, it was difficult for me to adjust to the food and culture here and I threw a lot of tantrums, but now during each trip to here, I find myself falling in love with Kerala more. I go to the restaurant Dhe Puttu, watch Koodiyattom performances and catch up with friends. I fell in love with Wayanad. My affair with Kerala started in 2012 and it is 2017 now!”  

The language barrier too has gone. Isha philosophises, “You cannot emote in a language you do not understand. And you cannot keep on saying that you do not understand that language as an excuse, so I have picked up Malayalam now.” Coming back to Isha’s Hindi projects, it cannot get bigger than this. Isha is acting in Salman Khan-starrer Tubelight directed by Kabir Khan and an Akshat Varma-directorial starring Saif Ali Khan. Her happiness comes clearly across. “I play a cameo though an important part in the historical war drama Tubelight and I don’t want to reveal more about my character.” But she has more to say about her role. “I am a huge Delhi Belly fan and I could not have asked for a better debut in Hindi than with the director of that movie. The second attraction was Saif; again I have enjoyed his films and after acting alongside him, I have become an even bigger fan. He is a wonderful co-actor and a very intelligent person, which is a rare combination. I play a photographer in the film.”

Isha has already acted with Shah Rukh Khan in a commercial. She quips, “That’s three Khans off my list; now I guess Aamir Khan is the only one left!” Isha is very happy with the way her career has shaped up and mentions that 2016 has been very kind to her. Her Bollywood films have kept her busy and she has been part of many commercials last year. 2017, she adds, has started with a bang. She has been busy with dance shows through January and hopes better things are in store. Isha reflects, “See, I not only act, I do modelling, go for my kathak classes, do yoga and have also started voice classes in Mumbai. So it is not one thing happening, but many things.”  She says, “How life pans out is not in your control but I want to try and focus and set up some goals in life!”