"Challenge for me was to not let my character be stereotyped": Sonal Jha on playing Kumud Mishra in Jehanabad [Exclusive]

Sonal Jha's portrayal of Kumud Mishra in SonyLiv's Jehanabad – Of Love and War is receiving applause from all sections. Jha is known for her work in films like Lipstick Under My Burkha, 3 Storeys, Fire in the Mountains, Chillar Party, Zee's Love Hostel, Sunflower. Her popular characters in shows like Na Aana Is Des Laado and Balika Vadhu is already etched in our memory.

Currently seen in Jehanabad, helmed by director Rajeev Barnwal, Sonal Jha got in touch with International Business Times, India, to talk about her experience of working in the show, the vibe on the set and lots more.

You are originally from Bihar. So, did pulling off this role come easy to you?

Yes, yes. I actually did prepare for the role. Though I'm from Bihar but still I had to kind of brush up my Bihari accent because I left Bihar thirty years ago and I don't speak Hindi in that articulation. So again, I had to go back and practice my accent. Also, I had to adapt that body language as she comes from a small town called Jehanabad and had to incorporate that into my character.

What was your mindset going into this role?

The challenge was how to play this character captivatingly because in many of the shows mothers' role often gets stereotyped. The role mothers play generally lack layers and intensity. Hence, this character was very challenging for me as I had to put an effort to make this relatable and authentic. So when people see this mother, they right away think that this is a women who really belongs to that place and timeline.

What do you think has worked in the favour of the show and clicked with the audience?

I think it truly is the writing that is the USP of the show because it has 3 parallel tracks altogether. It weaves together an intriguing tale of love, anarchy, caste politics and Naxalism. It isn't easy for any writer to amalgamate all these elements together and create one phenomenal show. So Rajeev has done a wonderful job I would say. This series is different because it has a very well-built political narrative as well.

How was the shooting experience with you co-stars?

We had an incredibly thrilling and delightful time on set! We were all so comfortable and jubilant, and the best part was that we worked together as one cohesive team. We had the best of times, and even after the shoot wrapped, we hung out and went shopping together!

Any particular memory from the shooting days you'd like to share?

After completing 2-3 takes, the director was pleased with the scene but I was not content and desired to have one more take. The Director of Photography glanced at me and inquired if I wanted another take. I responded affirmatively and the DOP immediately suggested another take claiming there were some technical issues in the previous one. Consequently, the director had to take one more shot and I was very impressed by this. So that was something I really liked about the relationship and understanding we all shared with director, dop and other team members.

What are your future projects?

There are couple of projects in pipeline like a feature film '12th Fail' by Vidhu Vinod Chopra, Amazon Prime's Made in Heaven, also going on a US trip with my musical play Mughal-e-azam and another film named Agra directed by Kanu Behl.