After playing the fierce matriarch Nagma in Gangs of Wasseypur, Richa Chadda trusted her instincts with Bholi Punjaban, the fearsome don in Fukrey. The film has been making steady business at the box office and has garnered positive feedback from all corners, including Shah Rukh Khan who praised it on Twitter.
Richa has been receiving critical acclaim for this fun and villainous role, but she wondered whether this risk might pay off this early in her career. “I didn’t predict such a response for me, I was sure of the film’s success, as it’s a good piece of work, and it’s a fun comedy. We had an incredible director and production support was amazing!” Refusing to lie low after her awards and acclaim for Gangs, Richa was ready to seek out diverse and interesting roles. “I was anxious to play a negative lead at the start of my career, especially, with 4 boys and a streak of evil. It feels great because Fukrey was a gamble that paid off. And people have loved me as the animal-print and hoodie donning mafiaso, after the pan-chewing elderly Nagma Khatoon!”
Richa will be switching gears for her upcoming releases, Sanjay Leela Bhansali’s Ram Leela, and Prerna Wadhawan’s Ishqeria which is her first romantic film. “When I did ‘Gangs…’, everybody was asking me the same question – ‘When will I be seen playing a romantic film?’ So finally I did a film with Neil, which is a typical romantic film…I am really looking forward to this film.”
With this high profile work, we cannot wait to see Richa Chadda as the feisty girl-next-door.
