MUMBAI: We have many reasons to love Hina Khan. After being a TV star for more than eight years, she decided to take a jump into films. The actress made her debut with Vikram Bhatt’s Hacked and backed it up with web projects like Damaged 2, Smartphone, and Wishlist.

Shr turned heads in 2019 when she walked the Cannes red carpet where her film Lines was screened. The project was premiered on Voot yesterday. In a chat, Hina gets talking about the film and more.

Here are excerpts.

After a long wait of two years, Lines is finally here. How are you feeling?
I was just discussing that I am reliving so many memories. Lines is very close to my heart, as it’s set up back home in Kashmir. Even though I have grown up there, I didn’t know of the many difficult times people go through. We live in a metro, and treat them as numbers but never get to know of the devastation they go through — be it families being divided across the border or people losing loved ones in wars or crossfire. Innocent people die or are living away from their loved ones for years. Lines will bring forth the beautiful story of Nazia and her grandmother, and what happens to them.

Was that the reason you and Rocky decided to back the film as producers?
We backed it because we loved the story. I heard the concept first. When I told Rocky about it, he said let’s co-produce it. It’s such an amazing story and has been put beautifully. It’s not a commercial project but is realistic with raw emotions. I won’t say it’s based on a true story but it’s anecdotal. There are some really unfiltered emotions, and it’s said the way it’s supposed to be.

Tell us more about becoming Nazia and shooting with Farida Jalal
Nazia, in terms of her look, is just a village girl and I have actually gone without make-up for the film. Before we went on floors, I spent time with people from the area to observe the way they talk and behave, to be able to bring forth that simple side. It was really fun for me as I even rode a bike. For Farida ji, what do I say, it was an honour to share screen with her. You won’t believe, she is so updated about everything that’s happening in the industry. She even knows what one wore to the airport (laughs). She might not be on social media but she has all the latest news and has even watched every film. It was a treat to work with her, and even when I wasn’t shooting I would just watch her perform.

It’s said that lines between mediums are blurring but the kind of content that gets created are still very different. As an actor who is looking to win the world, will a daily show still interest you?
I have been saying this for the last year that I have taken a break from television. The medium made me who I am with my very first project, and Akshara, my character is still loved by all. However, I have really worked hard to be known as Hina Khan today and I feel happy that people know me for who I am. I still get calls for TV shows and it breaks my heart to say no to everyone but I want to focus on OTT and the web space as of now. It takes less time and you can try a lot of variety.

The last few months have been really tough for you, from your father’s death to you testing positive for Covid-19. Where did you find the strength to cope up with all of it?
Pata nahi (I don’t know). I don’t want to talk about what happened but I experienced something — the art of distraction. We humans, even in the worst of times, we learn to move on and want to distract ourselves. And honestly, that hurts. You want to think about what happened but choose not to, and that really pains. But at the end of the day one has to move forward. I think the past few months I have learnt and mastered the art of distraction.

Credits: Indian Express