'Darlings': Vijay Varma feared hurting Alia Bhatt while filming scenes
Bollywood actor Alia Bhatt's maiden production venture, Darlings, made its way to Netflix on August 5. Within days of its release, the dark comedy film set social media abuzz with netizens weighing in with contrasting opinions about the film. In an interview with Hindustan Times, the lead actors and the director revealed what it was like to film Darlings.
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Bhatt, who is having a great run this year after having delivered blockbuster films, set up her own production venture Eternal Sunshine Productions back in March 2021. At the time she had also announced that Darlings would be the first production project under her banner. The Gangubai Kathiawadi actor teamed up with Shah Rukh Khan's Red Chillies Entertainment to produce this Netflix project.
Not being method actors helped Bhatt, Vijay Varma stay cordial
Speaking to Hindustan Times about co-star Vijay Varma, Bhatt said, "We were not laughing ha ha in the middle of that. But overall, our vibe on set was quite comfortable." She also added, "We are not really method actors so we were not really being aggressive with each other BTS (behind the scenes)." Varma essayed the role of Bhatt's abusive husband in the film.
Varma wanted to make sure Bhatt wasn't hurt unintentionally
Varma, on the other hand, talked about how worried he was not to unintentionally hurt Bhatt while filming physical abuse sequences. "It was a physically powerful exchange, I wanted to make sure the other actor is not hurt or even felt wrong (sic)," he said. "I was very clear that I will come and grab your shoulder, so be ready for this," he added.
Varma also spoke about his character's personality in the film
Following the film's release, Varma's character also received a lot of hate on social media. "Human beings are anything but black and white. We figured out what is the shade of the character. It's slightly on the darker side," Varma said. "He is insecure; he has an inferiority complex with him. But he overcompensates for that as a defense mechanism," he added.
Other upcoming projects by the lead actors
On the work front, Bhatt has Karan Johar's directorial film Rocky Aur Rani Ki Prem Kahani alongside Ranveer Singh lined up. She also has Ayan Mukerji's highly-anticipated film Brahmāstra: Part One - Shiva in which she will be seen along with her husband Ranbir Kapoor. Whereas Varma was recently roped in for Sujoy Ghosh's segment in the upcoming anthology Lust Stories 2 on Netflix.