Priyanka Setia says patriarchy and violence against women are the leitmotif in her latest web series Khauf

Lovely actress Priyanka Setia, associated with a host of prestige projects like Khufiya, Sacred Games 2, The Office et al, may not yet be a household name. With a large body of work, including plays like the path-breaking The Vagina Monologues behind her, she rarely fails to nail her parts, small or big.

As she once again makes a mark in Amazon Prime Video’s web series Khauf in a key character of Reema, thoughts like how to stand out in an ensemble cast do not bother her. Nor is she rankled by the fact that even though she has given her best, reviews may or may not mention her superlative performance. She says, “If you start getting upset over such small matters, you will only mess up your head. For me what matters is that my director, show-runner and writer are happy.”

Writing is what anyway makes her say yes to a part. Since creator and writer Smita Singh is someone whose work she had seen in Sacred Games (Priyanka too starred in second season), there was no reason to say no to Khauf. She quips, “It was a no-brainer.” Horror, indeed, isn’t the easiest watch and we wonder if it is equally difficult for actors to step into the horror verse. Well, firstly she doesn’t think Khauf is your average horror, filled with jump scares and regular ghost-haunted mansions. She adds, “Khauf is more of a psychological thriller dealing with many deeper issues.”

Indeed, she agrees that horror is fast becoming the name of the entertainment game and as a genre, in execution

and treatment is certainly coming of age too, more true in context of Khauf. Since patriarchy and violence against women are the leitmotif in the series, she nods that these are indeed very relevant, all-pervasive issues of our society. Why she a Delhi girl learnt how to defend herself early in life from sexual harassment in public spaces. But she is not sure whether it’s the job of cinema/series to sensitise people on such concerns. She says, “We are telling a story which is human, relatable and relevant and not upholding a flag, only showing things the way they are. In the process if majority of women can relate to the subject and some men too are waking up and getting the creeps, it’s wonderful, but that is not the prime motive.”

Women’s world

As she herself picks up a pen and is busy writing a web series, women are at the front and centre of it. Whether she has herself in mind for the protagonist’s role, whose character-arc grapples with vicissitudes of life after her husband’s suicide, the answer is a big no. She smiles, “A lot of people tell me to write for myself (actor in me.) Only I don’t think this is how it works.” Yes, the part that would launch her on the national consciousness might still elude her. But her metric is not the length of screen-time, rather how deep and meaningful the role is.

Former flight attendant and model Priyanka turned to acting for the sheer love of its craft and art. Trained under the likes of thespian Pankaj Kapur, her first teacher, she learnt the all important lesson of how to use body as a tool of acting. Acting, after all, she surmises is all about giving and receiving. Of course, after signing Khauf, one look at the star cast and she was a wee bit daunted. “Imagine acting with such phenomenal actors, all of whom were going to bring in their A game. I was a tad apprehensive about whether I could do justice to what the writer had written and what the makers had envisioned.” Judging by her performance, perhaps, she needn’t have worried. Dead right in her observation, “When a series works, credit goes to the entire cast,” to glamour struck aspiring actors her advice is equally on point, “Whatever may be your reasons for joining the industry, get a complete grasp over your craft.”

Real take

A style diva herself, she doesn’t discount the value of glamour per se but counters, “Where is glamour in Jaideep Ahlawat’s Hathiram Chaudhry in Paatal Lok? Or, the characters in Khauf?” Glamour, she knows is what you see on the outside, a byproduct, while acting is deep dive into cesspool of emotions. Just as she plumbed the psyche of Reema in Khauf, a character which stayed with her for a long time, and hopefully in people’s memory too. Only to keep refreshing our memory log she will be seen in Raat Akeli Hai 2 and a movie she is not at liberty to talk about yet. What she does divulge is how the industry where she began her journey with, Hawaizaada in 2015, has certainly changed for the better. “Auditions ensure casting is merit-based and OTT has truly become the equalizer,” she says.