Mumbai: After featuring in multiple language films from Hindi, Marathi, Bengali and to projects in South India, Radhika Apte is all set to make her foray in Hollywood and the actor says she always had the desire to do international cinema.
Apte will be seen in Michael Winterbottom’s “The Wedding Guest”, alongside Dev Patel and will also feature in producer-turned-director Lydia Dean’s untitled World War II spy drama, with Stana Katic and Sarah Megan Thomas.
“My desire was not just to do a Hollywood film but to do an international film. My desire was to do world cinema. I want to be able to do cinema in any language and do something I am capable or suitable to do. I don’t want to restrict myself to just one kind of cinema,” the 32-year-old actor said. In the World War II film, the actor will be playing the role of spy of Indian descent, Noor Inayat Khan.
The movie traces the story of British intelligence officer Vera Atkins (Katic) and the two women she sends into France as spies, one of whom is Khan. “It is about women spies. A lot of people did not know about it and we have not had a film on them. I felt it is a very interesting and important subject. “Noor Inayat Khan is an inspiring character that I have come across. It has been interesting to get the opportunity to play her,” she says.
What appealed the most about Khan to Apte was that she had a certain internationality to her character. “She was born in Russia, her mother was an American, her father was an Indian Muslim. She was a British national who grew up in France. She used to write, she was a musician. She was ahead of her times. She was brave. I don’t think there was any other character who is so unique and extraordinary,” the actor says. She was not much aware about Khan but research helped her know more about her.
Apte, however, remains tight-lipped about revealing more details regarding both of her international projects. She may be cracking international projects now, but the “Padman” actor says she has been giving auditions for films abroad for quite some time.
“I have auditioned for a few films but I did not get the part. I audition for films more abroad than I do in India as in here people have seen my work more. Nobody knows about it there. I audition in India too but not as much,” she says. “There was some international collaboration with my films like ‘Parched’, ‘The Ashram’,” she adds.
Apte believes there are some differences in the working style between Hindi film industry and Hollywood. “There are few main differences like they work project to project. They are punctual – everything starts on time, ends on time. I feel, in India, we are capable of far more hectic work in a way. We are capable of any kind of disaster management with far more efficiency,” she says.
