Imagine a television set from the ‘90s, one of those boxy ones. Press play on an Aishwarya Rai Bachchan or a Madhuri Dixit song, remote in hand, standing valiantly in hopes of doing some semblance of justice to the very able dancing genome of these brilliant performers. For Sharvari, being a Bollywood star is bringing that childhood ritual to life. The Munjya actor is a new addition to Bollywood but is already making waves. Now, onto her fourth major project with Alia Bhatt in the YRF-backed spy universe film, Alpha, she’s primed to prove her mettle in the action realm for the second time, with Vedaa being her premier tryst with the challenging genre.
“Being able to be a part of Dinesh Vijan’s horror comedy universe and YRF’s spy universe–the two big IPs of Bollywood–is a huge motivator for me as an actor. I’m just grateful to Vijan and Aditya Chopra for believing in me and giving me this chance,” she shares. When quizzed about her genre of preference, on the lines of something that comes more naturally to her, she strongly opines, “I don’t think that there’s anything that comes naturally. The prep for both movies is absolutely contrasting because, for Munjya, I was supposed to get into the skin of the ghost at one point and work on a lot of body language. The YRF spy universe has a lot of intense action training and dietary restrictions because it’s such cool action. You really really want to get into the skin of that character and do justice to the action script that has been designed for you.”
While she’s no stranger to sweating it out in the gym and strenuously training for a desired physique for high-octane action sequences, learning a new skill can surely be a task. “My boxing training for Vedaa was quite intense. When I started training, it took me two months to actually just build my stamina, endurance, and fitness levels to get into a schedule wherein you sleep on time and wake up on time because rest is absolutely important to give it your 100%. And then, for the next five months, I started my boxing training, which was when I actually picked up the gloves and started hitting punching bags,” she stated.
Personifying a character, which is merely just ink on paper at the start, is no sport for amateurs and beckons a deep-dive into the intricacies and not just ‘looking’ the part. This awareness came in handy for Sharvari when exposed to a varied repertoire of roles that demanded diverse dialects and styles of speaking. “I remember that I had gotten feedback about my Hindi having a slight Marathi tinge to it. I took that as constructive criticism and enrolled myself in diction and dialect classes. When I played a character in Maharaj, she was Gujarati. So, I made sure that while I was speaking Hindi, I had a Gujarati accent. Similarly with Vedaa, I was still speaking Hindi, but I had a Rajasthani dialect. So I think what helped me is that when my Hindi became neutral sans my initial accent, I was able to bring in the flavour of each region.”
With so much on her plate at what could be considered a formative stage in an actor’s career, Sharvari stresses the importance of building and sustaining a network. Work-wise, sure. But her circle of close confidants in her personal life is what keeps her grounded. “I have a solid set of very close school friends and a very strong family. I always, always lean on them whenever there is any pressure. They remind me who I am and what I’ve been made of.” Off days are a little scarce, and hence, spent relaxing and cuddling with her dog, Miso. “My day off is generally always in pyjamas. I have sets of night and morning pyjamas,” she laughs. She’s also big on hoarding ganjis (an endearing term for tank tops used by us desis). “I think I just don’t own t-shirts at all. Whenever I’m shopping, I just see a ganji and always pick something like that. There’s a severe dearth of proper t-shirts in my wardrobe,” she adds.
Amidst all this talk of fashion, it’s imperative we talk about Sharvari’s energy at the shoot. Infectious and magnetic. Highly involved and in-tune with everyone on set, it was refreshing to see her bring her A-game, dressed in the Anamika X H&M collaboration collection. She adds, “The experience was great because I’ve always loved ELLE. The setup and the clothes, especially the Anamika X H&M collection, are lovely. She is such an incredible designer. To be able to wear them and shoot for the cover was an absolute honour. I loved the water element that was incorporated. It was quite different and clutter-breaking.”
You can see she’s a performer–an actor, a star, but the real deal is her cumulative talent that shines through effortlessly, especially when her craft is laced with elements like dance. She’s trained under numerous stalwarts like Shiamak Davar, Saroj Khan and Ashley Lobo and harbours a nascent interest in playing the grand piano. “I learned the keyboard and synthesiser in school, but the grand piano is where my interest truly lies. I tried a couple of virtual classes in the lockdown but found it slightly difficult to grasp the intricacies,” she adds.
My one big conclusion is that she’s a learner. An eternally keen being, open to new experiences and respect for the arts. And that’s why, she might just be what Bollywood needs right now, someone real.
ELLE India Editor: Ainee Nizami Ahmedi, Photographer: Indra Joshi, Fashion Director: Zoha Castelino, Cover Design: Alekha Chugani, Words: Ipsita Kaul, hair: Florian Huriel, Makeup: Loveleen Ramchandani, Bookings Editor: Rishith Shetty, Assisted by: Komal Shetty, Vaishnavi Misra (styling), Production: Imran Khatri Productions, Set Design: Purnima Nath, Artist Management: YRF.
