Mallika Sherawat: I am searching for unique roles

Mallika Sherawat, who rose to fame with the romantic drama 'Khwahish' (2003) and Anurag Basu's erotic thriller 'Murder' (2004), will complete two decades in acting next year. Her Bollywood debut was a guest role in the Tusshar Kapoor and Kareena Kapoor-starrer 'Jeena Sirf Merre Liye' (2002).

If her 17 kisses in 'Khwahish' stunned people, Mallika's ample skin show in 'Murder' gave her the tag of a 'sex symbol'. She then delivered hits in Hindi like 'Pyaar Ke Side Effects' (2006), 'Welcome' (2007) and 'Shaadi Se Pehle'.

Mallika made waves overseas by starring in Jackie Chan's Chinese flick 'The Myth' (2005). She also acted opposite Irrfan Khan in the Indo-US production 'Hisss' (2010), which was screened at the Cannes Film Festival. 'Politics Of Love' (2011) was another Hollywood project.

The 44-year-old, who is in search of unique roles, has just done Rajat Kapoor’s 'RK/RKAY', a comedy meta-movie. Mallika plays the dual role of an actor and the character she plays in the movie within the film. The film had a theatrical release in the US and Canada last month.

She is happy that the film made it to theatres amidst a global pandemic. “My role is not the longest in the movie but it’s my meatiest. I researched on the works of Meena Kumari and Waheeda Rehman for the character Gulabo. It was also great fun playing the high-maintenance actress who essays Gulabo,” she says.

Working with Rajat and Ranvir Shorey was a memorable experience for Mallika. “This offer came at the perfect time. I was searching for roles with good depth. I wanted to extend my range as an actor. Hindi films have given me money, fame and hit songs but these kinds of serious roles were never offered to me. Acting with Rajat, Ranvir and Sanjay Mishra makes your craft better,” she explained.

Her last outing was the ALTBalaji web series 'Boo…Sabki Phategi'. Sanjay was her co-star in the horror-comedy. “This was another great role, offered by my long-time friend and associate, director Farhad Samji,” she says.

Mallika feels the OTT platforms provide great opportunities for actors to show their versatility. “It’s great that a show like 'Delhi Crime' can have many episodes with a 50-year-old actress as a protagonist,” she says.

But she isn't a fan of needless sex, expletives and violence in many shows. “A web series must tell a compelling and bold story. But I feel the freedom of expression also brings great responsibility,” she says.

She is working on a couple of web series. “My role in one of them is bold but it's well written," she says.