Shenaz Treasury is best remembered for her roles in ‘Ishq Vishk’ and ‘Delhi Belly’. After quite a gap, the actor is returning to a Bollywood movie with Kaalakaandi. The black comedy is directed by Akshat Verma, who is previously known for writing Delhi Belly.

For the past several years, Shenaz Treasury has been busy with her work in Hollywood and her travel blog. She has been seen in popular shows like ‘One Life to Live’, ‘Brown Nation’, ‘The Nightly Show with Larry Wilmore’ and has also appeared in Michael Showalter’s, ‘The Big Sick’. Shenaz has another Hollywood film coming out later this year called ‘My Cousin’s Wedding’.

We caught up with her to know more about her role in ‘Kaalakaandi’. In a quick and candid chat, she talks about her character in Kaalakaandi, working with Akshat Verma in both his films, her upcoming movies and more.

Shenaz Treasury

Shenaz Treasury

Can you tell us a bit about your role in Kaalakaandi?

It’s a fun role. Ayesha is a real firecracker. Equal parts party girl, independent go-getter, and opinionated femme fatale, all mixed in one.

The Bollywood and Hollywood industries are very different, from the pay scale to unions, to timings, everything is quite different.

What subjects does Kaalakaandi deal with and how does your character fit into the story?

I don’t want to give away too much, but it’s a morality play in three intersecting acts. There are codes of conduct in all walks of life and Kalakaandi explores how the codes get blurred when we are forced to make life-altering decisions.

You have worked with Akshat Verma, the director before in Delhi Belly, how was experience working with him after such a long gap?

Akshat is like family. Because of our history working together, it was very easy on set. He is also what I would call an actor’s director. He really understands how to work with actors to get their best performances, which is an important quality to have when you are working with such a diverse ensemble cast.

 

Shenaz Treasury

Shenaz Treasury

The movie has a huge cast and so did Delhi Belly, so does it get difficult to find your own space in a movie with such a huge cast?

That wasn’t a challenge at all, because as big as the cast was, there are three separate storylines that intersect only for brief moments. Most of the time I was interacting with the smaller group of actors in my storyline.

You are coming back to the screen after quite a gap for a Hindi movie, what were the other projects that you were working on? Do tell? 

Yes, I spent the last several years living in New York working on a variety of projects, which included the popular soap opera One Life to Live, the Netflix comedy Brown Nation, the Nightly Show with Larry Wilmore, and most recently I was featured in the popular romantic comedy called The Big Sick.

Later this year you will be seen in the Hollywood film ‘My Cousin’s Wedding’, tell us about your character in it and how did you prepare for it?

My character in that film is a wide-eyed Pakistani girl who has come to America in search of a husband, but she ends up finding love in a grocery store. It’s a sweet romantic comedy with another fun ensemble cast.  Preparing for it was pretty easy because she is a character type that I am familiar with.  What I wasn’t prepared for was the cold in New York City.  We mostly shot in Queens during December, so I’m happy to be back in Mumbai in the warm weather.

Shenaz Treasury

Shenaz Treasury

You have worked in both in Indian and international industry, are there any prominent difference in the industries?

The Bollywood and Hollywood industries are very different, from the pay scale to unions, to timings, everything is quite different.

Kaalakaandi released today on the 12th January 2018.

Watch: Official Trailer : Kaalakaandi