Playing a middle aged woman was most challenging: Priyanka

The 28-year-old actress plays Susanna, a character based on Ruskin Bond's story, who disposes off her seven husbands one by one in the movie, releasing this Friday. Priyanka plays a woman in 20s, who ages till 65 onscreen and the actress says she tried her best to make the transition look natural in the Vishal Bhardwaj film.

"It was a challenge that Vishal sir gave me. The transformation is very subtle.I observed the women around me and how they carried themselves in a certain age. Their is no drastic change in my character. But the interim period of 40s and 50s when she is not young and not so old was the most difficult but Vishal helped me with that," Priyanka said.

Priyanka, however, had no qualms in looking old onscreen. "Ageing was not bad but for me understanding the psyche of my character was very difficult. I had to portray her in a way that everyone empathises with her despite the fact that she kills seven people without remorse," she said.

The actress says she finds herself lucky to play strong women characters in Bollywood, which is male-dominated. "I was part of 'Fashion' which was a great character. Not just Bollywood, our society is male-dominated but we have reached a point where audience is ready for movies which tell a good story through characters. I am happy to be part of that process of change."

Priyanka will be seen romancing actors like Neil Nitin Mukesh, John Abraham, Irrfan Khan, Russian actor Aleksandr Dyachenko, Annu Kapoor, Nasseruddin Shah and his son Vivaan in the movie, and Priyanka agrees that she was terrified initially of working with Naseer and Annu Kapoor.

"I did a workshop with Naseerji before that I had always known him as Mirza Ghalib and the hero of 'Chamatkaar' which is one of my favourite films.

"I was apprehensive to work opposite actors, who are institutions in themselves but I discovered a fascinating thing with this film that you don't notice anything between action and cut and that helped me," she said.

The actress was all praise for Naseeruddin's son Vivaan, who debuts with the film. He plays Priyanka's youngest husband. "Acting is in his genes. It didn't feel like this was his first film. We hung out a lot and got to spend a lot of time together because the film is from Vivaan's character's point of view."

The actress, however, refused to draw a comparison between the father-son. "Both the actors were cast for their credibility as actors in individual...because they fit the character they were playing. I don't think it has anything to do with the relationship they share in real life. Moreover, they don't even cross paths in the film. But yes it was something interesting and different."