Rakul Preet Singh: I just saw the scene with Amitabh Bachchan as a chance to deliver an honest performance – Times of India

Rakul Preet Singh, who has been appreciated for her performance as first officer Tanya Albuqurque in Ajay Devgn’s Runway 34, believes that the court-room or the trial sequence with Amitabh Bachchan was one of the most challenging aspects of the movie. While she has teamed up with Ajay in the past, it was her first outing with the senior superstar.

Recalling the time when she shot the portions with him, Rakul says, “The most challenging part of being in the courtroom with Mr Bachchan was to perform with a certain degree of vulnerability without any evident retaliation towards his character. I had to display a dilemma as a junior pilot who has her loyalties towards her senior and her company, and who is in a fix without any fault of hers. She fears losing her future opportunities. Mr Bachchan’s character creates tension and panic and my character had to react to all of that without too many dialogues. There was more to be expressed through eyes and body language than lines. So, today, I don’t know how I did it. There was no formula or a method to do it correctly. At that time, I just saw the scene as a chance to deliver an honest performance.”

Rakul believes that having a strong co-actor only elevates the scene and her work in it. Elaborating on it, she says, “When you have a strong co-actor like Amitabh Bachchan, you can feed off their energy and their performance will also draw out the best in you. I still remember that day when we were shooting the trial sequence. I was nervous throughout the day. I was naturally feeling all that Mr Bachchan’s character had wanted Tanya, my character, to feel. And when we rolled, I just slipped into Tanya’s mindset and reacted to Mr Bachchan’s character the way she would have in that situation. I am an intuitive actor and I don’t overthink before any scene. I grasp the mood of the situation and go with it. I tuned my mind to be nervous and feel a certain fear. Till we wrapped up, I kept to myself, I did not joke or laugh around on the set that day so I don’t miss Tanya’s pulse. When I finished that scene, people clapped. Mr Bachchan appreciated it, too, which was a big deal for me. I still don’t know how it happened but everyone who saw the scene, from the edit to the post-production and the audience has appreciated it. That feels humbling and nice.”