Every character in Gangs of Wasseypur eye-catching: Huma Qureshi

New Delhi: Huma Qureshi, who has made her acting debut with the recently released mafia drama Gangs of Wasseypur, says she gets due attention in the film despite there being a bevy of characters.

The actress says she was initially apprehensive about going unnoticed in the Anurag Kashyap film as it also stars names like Manoj Bajpayee, Nawazuddin Siddiqui, Jaideep Ahlawat, Tigmanshu Dhulia, Reemma Sen, Richa Chadda among others. "I was apprehensive about taking on the role in such a big multistarrer film with a bunch of good actors. There was this feeling that I would go unnoticed. But the credit goes to Anurag. He gave me confidence. He knows what he is doing. Despite a dozen of characters sharing screen space, none of them is forgetful. Each one of them connects with the audience in a beautiful way. Each character has a story to tell, a significant role and does not overcrowd the film," Huma told reporters. Born and brought up in the Delhi, Huma comes from a complete non-film background. But that did not stop her from following her acting dreams. While shooting for a mobile phone advertisement with Aamir Khan, she bagged her dream debut. "I had done an ad for a mobile company with Aamir Khan which was directed by Anurag. During the ad shoot itself, Anurag told me that he will cast me in one of his films. At that point, I didn`t really take him seriously but was happy when he actually kept his word and called me to be a part of Gangs... I never auditioned for the part," she said. The actress also said that the director did not give her the script beforehand as he didn`t want her to superficially act out the scene. "I was one of the many actors who was not allowed to read the script of the film because Anurag wanted all of us to be as natural as possible. Some of the scenes in the film would have been completely ruined had it been acted out of the script," she added. Huma`s character Mohsina is introduced towards the end of the first part of the film. The actress says her character fleshes out in the second part alongwith her love interest played by Nawazuddin. "My character alongwith Nawaz`s and few others are only introduced towards the end of the film. So you see very little of us in Part 1. But we are there pre-dominantly in the second part," she said. Gangs of Wasseypur was screened in the Directors` Fortnight at the Cannes Film Festival this year and the actress says the international exposure has helped the film. "The reception that the film got at Cannes was unbelievable. The film belongs to the popular Bollywood genre with dance, drama, action but still we got a standing ovation after the screening. That shows that as long as there is a story to tell, connect with the audience and good acting, language does not matter. Emotions are universal. "Cannes has generated a buzz about the film and definitely created an interest. So I am hoping it will help the film," she said. This year Huma will also be seen in Luv Shuv Tey Chicken Khurana opposite Kunal Kapoor, which has been co-produced by Anurag. The film is being pitched as India`s first food film. "In the film I play a Punjabi girl. It`s a mad Indian film about food and family. It is set in a small town called Lalton near Ludhiana. Although I am from Delhi, I have never been to Punjab," she said. The actress is also currently shooting for Vishal Bhardwaj`s production Ek Thi Daayan. Huma has also signed Kal Ho Na Ho director Nikhil Advani`s next action film. "For Nikhil Advani`s film, which is an out and out action flick, I will be undergoing combative training. I feel happy that he thinks that I can pull it off. "Being an actress is not a 9 to 5 job that I will keep on doing the same kind of roles in every film. I want to do challenging roles. I don`t want to do the same stuff again and again because the audience will get bored of me and my films," she added. PTI