Exclusive! Sanjeeta Bhattacharya: Shah Rukh Khan brought a guitar, amplifier, and mic from home for me to sing. It was that ‘wow’ moment in my life

Shah Rukh Khan’s Jawaan girl Sanjeeta Bhattacharya is in Kolkata and shooting for her debut Bengali film. Directed by Srimanta Sengupta, the film also features Chiranjeet Chakraborty and Saurav Das. The musician-actress started shooting on February 15. In a candid chat with OTTplay, the actress talked about her Bengali connection, her music, and the time when Shah Rukh Khan awed her with his charm. Read on…

Also read: Just Shah Rukh Khan things: Superstar delivers the Jawan train scene, consisting of an 8-page monologue, in the first take 

Gorging on chingri machcher malaikari

Ever since Sanjeeta came to Kolkata to shoot she has been enjoying Bengali food. “I had chingri machcher malaikari and bhaat. I had roshogolla. I know it sounds a bit like ‘probashi-cliche’ but I truly love roshogolla,” said the actress. 

Sanjeeta was surprised to see the curiosity among the onlookers while shooting. “In Mumbai, I felt people are less curious. On the first day, I saw a lot of curious faces around. I found it rather cute,” she said, adding, “On the first day I met my co-actors and other team members. It was fun. Saurav and Chiranjeetda are very cool people. Other team members are approachable and helpful.”

Also read: The Broken News: Popular singer Sanjeeta Bhattacharya to play a journalist in Sonali Bendre's OTT debut show 

Sanjeeta is not at liberty to divulge the character. However, the actress said that her character is the reason why the story takes place. “I play a girl who comes to Kolkata and the city changes her life,” said the actress.

Growing up in a Bengali household

Sanjeeta has a strong Bengali influence from her family. “The typical flavour of this community is very strong for Bengalis. My father is an artist. My mother is from Mymensingh. During the Partition, her family went to Assam. Then she came to Kolkata and this is the city where my father and mother met and fell in love. Their Bengaliness taught me to be an artist. I have two brothers. One plays Tabla and the other is a painter and poet. I grew up listening to Rabindrasangeet and Baul. My mother resorted to Bengali cooking. There was no pasta, or pizza in her kitchen. We grew up on bhaat, machcher jhol, luchi and so on. So my life is shaped by this quintessential Bengaliness,” she said.    

While Sanjeeta grew up listening to the classics, she wanted to explore the modern Bengali popular culture. “I am seriously looking for some recommendations. I want to watch contemporary films and listen to new music,” she said. 

Working with Shah Rukh Khan and the 'wow' moment

Sanjeeta is still thrilled by the fact that she worked with none other than Shah Rukh Khan in Jawaan. Recalling the first meeting, she said, “We were on the set when SRK came. He hugged all of us and kissed on our forehead. And then he thanked us – all of us – for agreeing to work here. I of course melted. I am the one who should thank him for selecting me. But he is genuinely down-to-earth and humble. Given his position, he doesn’t need to be humble. He is chivalrous and has a pleasant personality. He has a big heart and that’s why he is who he is,” said the actress. 

Recalling her shooting days, Sanjeeta told us a story. “One evening while we were having dinner, sir’s (Shah Rukh Khan) manager Puja Dadlani told him that I am a musician and I sing. He appreciated and we got back to work. The next evening, while having dinner, he got a guitar, amplifier, and mic from his home and asked me to sing. It was maddening. He remembered it from the previous night’s conversation and got these things from home. It was that ‘wow’ moment in my life. But it was also nerve-wracking to pick a song and sing it in front of him. He deals with the best talents. So I picked what I love. It was a Spanish song that I wrote and composed. It is called Pensarte. After this, I sang the Spanish song in the film as well,” The musician-actress recalled. 

‘Jawaan is a life-altering event’

Sanjeeta doesn’t find it hard to follow her passion for music and acting. “I identify myself as an artiste. Music is my first love and I am a dancer as well. Acting came to me recently – about three years ago. I know I will be able to pursue my love for arts if I manage my time. It’s not that hard. The previous couple of years were busy. This year, I will drop six to seven songs. Jawaan is a life-altering event. Things started getting crazy. It is the best thing that happened to me art-wise. It gave me that exposure. It introduced me to Bollywood and it is as Bollywood as it gets. It is, in fact, a pan-India exposure. I played a small part it is epic and I am enjoying it,” she said.