'It was like we were living not acting'

Angry Indian Goddesses is not a feminist film, it’s about celebrating womanhood. It is about a combination of women, supported by each other,” says Amrit Maghera,who plays the character of Joana Mendes in the film.

Maghera says that she was in Canada when she auditioned for the film. She could relate to the character of Jo (aka Joana) as it was a character that she was in her real life. Mendes is Freida’s (Sarah-Jane Dias) Anglo Indian cousin who dreams of becoming a Bollywood actress but is struggling, innocent and lonely.

“I was able to bring in my own life experiences. I was able to relate to all the years I have spent in Mumbai to become an actress,” she adds. She explains that the way Joana faces casting couch, embarrassment, drama, on a daily basis but still channels all her energy on her goal was very similar to hers.

She has previously worked in a lead role in the street dance feature film Mad About Dance (2014) and also in the Punjabi film Goreyan Nu Daffa Karo (2014).

“Angry Indian Godesses is definitely a graduation for me, which makes me happy. I learnt a lot from the film. Pan Nalin (director) brought out the actor in us. It wasn’t a three dimensional portrayal, we were just sitting and doing whatever was asked and the camera would roll accordingly. It was extremely improvisational and impromptu. It was like we were living not acting,” exclaims the London-based professional model turned actress of Indian, English and Scottish origin.

She also said during shoots she could feel that the mood of the film had set in all the characters. “The girls were as friendly, empowering and protective about each other off screen as on screen. No cliche cat fights throughout,” she tells Metrolife.

The film is apparently India’s first female buddy film. The film stars Sandhya Mridul, Tannishtha Chatterjee, Sarah-Jane Dias, Anushka Manchanda, Rajshri Deshpande besides Maghera.

The film has faired well internationally grabbing many accolades. Explaining their friendship in the film, Maghera says that the six of them talk about periods, sex, drinking, clothes, partners everything and anything, and “there is nothing we hide from each other”.

“My favourite line from the film”, she says, “‘women are women’s worst enemies’ – I think there is so much truth in this. If only we could celebrate each other more rather than bashing each other down and gossiping negatively about each other, we would be seen as stronger individuals.”