Aditi Rao Hydari’s recent portrayal of the iconic Anarkali in Zee5’s Taj: Divided by Blood has gained a widespreasd critical acclaim. The actress gets candid with The Pioneer over an exclusive chat on what fascinated her about Anarkali and Taj: Divided by Blood.
Amartya Smaran
Aditi Rao Hydari belongs to the pantheon of the most beautiful and charismatic leading ladies in Indian cinema. She made her Tollywood debut with director Indraganti Mohanakrishna’s Sammohanam(2018). After the success of her maiden Telugu film, she went on to star in a couple of other T’wood flicks: Antariksham 9000 KMPH(2018), V(2020), and Maha Samudram(2021).
Her portrayal of the iconic mythical character Anarkali, in Zee5’s Taj: Divided by Blood is gaining widespread critical acclaim. The web series was released on Zee5 on March 3 and is available for viewing in three Indian languages(Hindi, Tamil, Telugu). Recently, the actress paid a visit to Hyderabad as a part of the webseries’ promotions and The Pioneer didn’t miss out on the opportunity to dig deeper into what fascinated her about Anarkali and Taj: Divided by Blood.
“My reference was my script,” said Aditi Rao speaking of her character’s reference. “Anarkali has been played by the iconic Madhubala ji and I think there can be no better Anarkali than her. We were not making Mughal-E-Azam, we were making a story about the Mughals, the succession, love, and betrayal. Actually, this is a family drama. This girl, Anarkali, of course, is a very important part of the story because she shakes up this kingdom. The prince’s life changes because of her.”
Initially Aditi thought the makers were remaking Mughal-E-Azam and was not quite keen on signing the project, “I thought that we were remaking Mughal-E-Azam and I was like, “You can’t touch that film. It’s too perfect.” And then I realised that they were not making Mughal-E-Azam and they were so determined to have me. Once I heard it, it was such a new perspective and such a human story, I was very excited to do it. I got to delve into the very fragile, but courageous part of a girl who is the secret of a palace. It’s such a beautiful combination of innocence and courage.”
She says playing a girl from the 16th century who overturns the kingdom and has the courage to stand up to the emperor, to love, and stand by her loyalty was sort of a blessing. “Anarkali is a vibe. I was very happy that they didn’t take no for an answer and they convinced me that I should do it. Now that the show is a success and people are loving Anarkali, I’m very relieved and grateful. I genuinely feel that it’s Madhubala ji’s blessings that have made this work for us.”
“My work is to give them a platform or the stage to make their space look believable and plausible,” said the director of the webseries, Ron Scalpello, while in an exclusive interaction with The Pioneer ahead of the show’s release.
We asked Aditi as to what kind of direction she received from Ron Scalpello. She said, “The showrunners William and Ron described Anarkali to me as this epic tragic heroine. I know there’s a lot of romanticism and poetic quality to that. Through my discussions with them. I was determined to also bring out the very steady courageous heart of Anarkali. Her power is her innocence and purity. The fact that she has been violated as a little girl but she has done no wrong. Her only fault has been to dream of freedom and fall in love with a boy, who happens to be a prince; she doesn’t know that. She falls in love with the boy who respects her and who loves her and will go to any length for that love. Don’t all of us want that?”
Aditi informed us that she was extremely determined to work on her lines. “When you’re translating from English to Urdu, translations can be complicated,” explained the V star. “I worked a lot on my dialogue because I felt like Anarkali should be soft, poetic, and graceful. But, because she has truth and purity on her side, I felt like whatever she says should hit you like a dagger.”
The Maha Samudram actress was so empathetic towards her character that she personally requested the creators of the show that at no point should Anarkali lower her eyes out of fear or shame because she’s not done anything wrong. “She just wanted to love and dance. Now that the makers were so collaborative, they encouraged me to play it like that and not to just play her as a damsel in distress. Even when she runs, I said she runs with courage, that she will be free. Even when she dies, she dies looking straight into the eyes of her love. Love is the most powerful thing,” asserted the charming lady.
The Sammohanam actress only looks forward to great things and she’s ever-so passionate to learn new things in life. “I realised one thing growing up in this industry, that I’m a person who functions from the heart,” earnestly shared Aditi. And continued, “A lot of people think that, if they touch me, I’ll break or if the wind comes, I’ll just fly away and they think I’m this very sort of delicate person who needs to be saved but trust you, I will save you in a storm because I listen to my heart and I stand very steady. My vulnerability is my biggest strength, and I think I’ve learned to accept that over the years.”
Wrapping up the interview, she expressed how delighted she is, now that she fulfilled her childhood dream of being a Mani Ratnam heroine, “My childhood dream of working with Mani Ratnam Sir and being a Mani Ratnam heroine really changed my life. I love to be challenged, nurtured, and learn everyday. These are the things I’ve learned over the years and I continue to learn. I walk onto a set and I’m like a sponge. That is why it’s very important for me to work with people I really respect.”
