Netflix's eight-episode Sacred Games created ripples in the industry with its gripping and gritty storyline, strong narrative and engaging characters which made it look all convincing on the screen.
The web series also introduced new faces to the world of entertainment and one such appealing character is that of actress Kubbra Sait, who made a big move by taking up the role of an LGBT character named Kukoo.
Her performances made the walls between the reel and real so narrow that people are now googling to know whether the actress is a real transgender.
"That according to me is their appreciation. I am a woman who likes men, yet, I have managed to convince the world that I have a willy. I played the character with the same honesty that I played a tree when I was a six-year-old, in a school play," Kubbra told Mid-day.
Kubbra plays Nawazuddin Siddiqui's lover in Sacred Games and their wild sex scene had pulled all the internet's attention and soon the sequence soon surfaced on YouTube. But playing the third gender was no less than hitting a jackpot for the actress as, after the scene, the makers wrote more scenes for her.
"The character made a passing reference in the book. But, once they saw how it was being played out, they wrote more scenes for me. Most of what we shot was retained. Showcasing Kukoo's humanity was important. The writing is such that her anatomy is irrelevant. Her emotions stay with you because heartbreak is universal. I had to make her endearing, not trashy. Transgender doesn't need to imply loud," she said.
After living the character of Kukoo, Kubbra has become more empathetic and aware about the hardships faced by the third gender community across the world.
"The implications of [section] 377 [of the IPC], the meaning of transexual, Pride day and LGBTQ, all have a new meaning. Now, everything [transgender roles] will be compared to this [character]. Taking up this role has been a big move," she added.
Sacred Games has become probably the first of its kind to portray an LGBT character which was not even a part of Vikram Chandra's book by the same name. It was released globally on the streaming platform Netflix on July 6.
