Pallavi Chatterjee on Regional Cinema's Rise and Acting Across Languages

Citing the example of South cinema, Pallavi said that, earlier confined to the regional audience, the industry now has a pan-India reach.

She was asked, "How do you view the rise of regional cinema today?"

Reacting to this, Pallavi shared, "South Indian cinema has grown tremendously and has even surpassed Bollywood in many ways. Earlier, it was confined to regional audiences, but today it has a pan-India and global reach."

When asked, "You have worked in Bengali, Hindi, Oriya, and even international projects. While shifting between languages and cultures, what is the biggest change in an actor's mindset?", Pallavi shared that for an actor, the character always comes first. However, she added that language plays an important role because comfort with a language helps performance.

"When working in a different language, proper preparation is essential. If you are not comfortable with your lines, your focus shifts from performance to dialogue delivery", she went on to explain.

Giving an example, she added, "I am comfortable in Hindi, English, and Bengali, but when I worked in Oriya, I made sure to sit with locals and technicians to perfect pronunciation. Homework is crucial for every actor. Being well-prepared before going on set makes a huge difference.

Talking about the biggest evolution in her cinematic journey, Pallavi said, "Earlier, there was no OTT, and actresses often had limited roles after a certain age, mostly restricted to stereotypical characters. I wanted to keep doing meaningful work, so I stepped into production. Gradually, I gained knowledge and experience. I was always very close to technicians, and they supported me a lot. I even carried equipment on set because filmmaking is teamwork. People often judge a film as good or bad, but they don't realize the effort, money, and emotions that go into making it. Understanding that was a big part of my evolution."

- IANS