Exclusive! Gullak actor Geetanjali Kulkarni says her character Shanti Mishra represents every homemaker in India

Veteran actor Geetanjali Kulkarni returns as Shanti Mishra in Gullak 3. Created by Shreyansh Pandey for the banner of The Viral Fever (TVF), the show follows the tales of the Mishra family, a middle-class family who live in a small town in the heart of India. Kulkarni plays the role of the homemaker Shanti Mishra, wife of Santosh Mishra and mother of Annu Mishra and Aman Mishra. The show opened to positive responses on the release of Season one in 2019 and Season two in 2021. The award-winning series also features Jameel Khan, Vaibhav Raj Gupta and Harsh Mayar. As the show has been renewed for Season 3 and is now out for viewing on SonyLIV, OTTplay caught up with the actor Geetanjali Kulkarni.

In an exclusive interview with OTTplay, the actor spoke about working on Season 3 of the show, what the audience can expect from the new season and how Shanti Mishra has helped her evolve as a person. She also spoke about her upcoming projects. Excerpts:

Your award-winning show Gullak is coming back with season 3. How do you feel?

I am feeling happy. I am very eager to know what the audience thinks about it. We have all made the show with a lot of love and hope that gets translated on the screen. I am sure people will like Gullak 3 as much as they liked Season 2. I am really forward to seeing what people have to say about it.

The new season looks interesting. The trailer has this quirky line where your character, Shanti Mishra is seen telling about her husband, 'Ye to ghar mein politics karte hai'. The video ends with the usual line that 'Ye kahani nahi, kisse hai'. To is baar, kya kisse lekar aa rahi hai Mishra family?

Well, is baar bhi kayi kisse hai. Anu got a job. The father is going through a different phase and what you see in the trailer is a hint of what is going to happen. In kisso mein bhi pyaar hai, thodi nok joh hai, thodi tension bhi hai. I am sure everybody will relate to the situation. People have always loved all the characters on the show. And we have tried to tell relatable stories again. Aur bhi kirdar aayenge, aur bhi kuch hoga unke life mein.

Your performance as Shanti Mishra has been lauded and you also got the Filmfare award. Did you expect the show and your character to get so popular?

When we are preparing, acting, or shooting, we are always focussing on what needs to be done and not if the audience will like it or not. At least I am that kind of a person. I am more concerned about what I can do now as an actor but you do get an idea of the kind of response you can expect when the reactions from the crew members were coming in. While reading the script, you sometimes laugh a lot and there would be some things that you particularly like a lot. You go through all emotions while reading it. So I always had an idea that people will like it but did not expect this kind of a tremendous response. We were all surprised. We of course wanted it to happen but we were not sure. I was getting messages from the audience that they are eagerly waiting for season 3. I am fortunate to be a part of Gullak.

You had earlier said that it was challenging to play Shanti Mishra as she is completely different from you. How so? How did you overcome challenges?

Now in Season 3, I have come to know Shanti Mishra a lot. In the first scene, I was sceptical but when the first season became a success, it gave us all confidence for Season 2. People had a liking for Shanti Mishra. I was more confident and wanted to bring in more nuances and layers to the character. Of course, the writing is very good and I was enjoying playing Shanti Mishra on the show. There are different shades to her character. She has grown and matured. Her responses to things have changed now. There is one scene in the trailer as well, showing that the father has been suspended. That incident was very close to me. When I was in class 6 or 7, my father fought with his boss and left the job. Though I was happy that he is at home now, my mother was really upset and frustrated. I didn't understand why then. Now, I could re-enact her frustration and angst. That incident is close to me as I have seen it happening in my family. I had forgotten about it later. It came to my mind when I was reading that episode.

Now, I got a connection with Shanti Mishra and I'd like to explore her more. There is a lot of exchange happening between Shanti Mishra and Geetanjali Kulkarni. I think Shanti Mishra is making Geetanjali Kulkarni more evolved as a person. As I had said, there are a lot of dissimilarities between us. I am not a homemaker and I don't have kids. I've been working for about 25 years now. I am such an independent person. I realised while playing Shanti Mishra that being a homemaker is such a tough job. I have so much respect for them. Shanti Mishra represents every homemaker in India.

Shanti Mishra's character has been interesting and as you mentioned, evolving too. She is the pillar of the family but wasn't getting due credit. She then takes a stand. So, what more can we expect from her in season 3?

I think you will see more shades of Shanti Mishra for sure. They have nok jhok in Season 2 but in Season 3, you will see that it has changed. In the trailer also, you will see a scene where she tells her husband, 'passbook dekhne se account mein paise nahi aa jata' and he responds by saying, 'tedi baat karne se muh sidha nahi ho jata'. If you see the reactions that they share, you will notice a certain playfulness. Shanti looks cool, not aggravated. There is still nok jhok between the couple but it has become a bit playful.

Your husband and actor Mr Atul Kulkarni had said he'd like to do a project with you if you'd be interested. Do we see it happening anytime soon?

Did he say it? (laughs) I'll be very happy to work with him. We hardly see ourselves portraying a couple. Humne hamesha apna career apne hisab se banaya hai. Our decisions are not dependent on each other. If something comes along, I'll be very happy. We are not someone who would go and tell people, 'hamare liye kuch likho' but if something comes up, we would do it.

You've done several different characters for different formats. But I believe you haven't done TV as much. Why is that so?

I tried to do TV in the beginning when I started acting after the National School of Drama. But TV has changed. Earlier, it used to be weekly episodes and all. That I like. During that time, we were doing weekly series. Later, whenever I tried, I didn't quite enjoy it. I am a person who enjoys the process and I give better results when I get to follow a process, rather than just reading and performing. I don't have that kind of skill. I need time. And that's why I love doing theatres. It gives you scope to try doing it in different ways. TV doesn't give much time. You need not be very quick. I am actually slow (laughs). I like repetitions and I am very comfortable with that.

Is that why you are doing more OTT projects of late? You have earlier said OTT has a longer shelf life and even if you do a smaller role, you get recognised.

OTT gives that opportunity. When we were shooting for Gullak, we rehearsed twice or thrice before we shoot a scene. when I was doing Aarya, I had a small role but I had two-three sessions with the director where we talked about the backstory of the character, what graph can we show and what would be the action. You also get the script in advance, so you get time to work on it too. Some changes may happen later but that is okay.

Your film Cobalt Blue was supposed to be released in December but was postponed. It finally released about a week ago. Why was there a delay?

Even I don't know why it has been postponed. It was supposed to release in December.

Any other project you are currently working on?

I finished shooting for Rangbaaz 3. I have another web series, which is being produced by Endemol. I also have a Hindi independent film. The title is not yet finalised. The shoot will begin in June. There are a couple of other projects I am in talks with.