EXCLUSIVE Interview! Sanjeeda Sheikh on Netflix's Heeramandi & working with Sanjay Leela Bhansali | Not Just Bollywood

Sanjeeda Sheikh opens up on her role in Heeramandi as Waheeda in a candid conversation with Firstpost’s Lachmi Deb Roy for ‘Not Just Bollywood’. He also mentions that to be in a Sanjay Leela Bhansali’s project it is important it is to trust his vision.

Edited excerpts from the interview:

How did you prepare yourself for the role of Waheeda in Heeramadi ?

SLB ’s  set is the most unpredictable set. You know that magic is going to be created. As Manisha Koirala said that the foundation of the character was already made by sir. We just had to trust his vision and execute it.

Since it’s on OTT platform you get an opportunity to discover about the character with every scene and every episode. You are a lot more into the skin of the character because you are shooting for so many days. And I am more of an instinctive actor, so I enjoy the essence of a character each day by doing something different and Sanjay Leela Bhansali trusted me with that. Everyone knows that he is brilliant with his creative mind and his honesty to his craft. And you are in the best hands and you have to give more than 200 percent more than what you are actually doing.

On cinema changing. As an actor I think it’s a great time for craftsmen. What are your views on that?

I think there is a huge shift. And because of the pandemic, the audience got a great exposure to world cinema. OTT is one such platform which is fearless when it comes to different content. It has an appetite for the audience. And I would say content is king.

As a viewer too, I want to watch a well-made story and whether it is male oriented or female oriented that is not the point.

WATCH the trailer of Netflix’s Heeramandi here: