It’s hard to miss an adept actress like Isha Talwar whenever she comes on your screen. Starting her acting career with a slew of Malayalam films such as Thattathin Marayathu, I Love Me,Balyakalasakhi and Ulsaha Committee to name a few, Talwar bid her time before making her foray into Hindi cinema with Salman Khan starrer Tubelight.

Since then, she has been widely praised for her acting skills in films like Article 15, Kaamyaab, Ginny Weds Sunny and Sharmaji Namkeen. However, the actress made major waves with her role of Madhuri Yadav in Mirzapur. She recently appeared in Dimple Kapadia starrer crime saga Saas Bahu Aur Flamingo and is on her way to excel further with Rohit Shetty’s Indian Police Force alongside Sidharth Malhotra and Shilpa Shetty.

During an exclusive chat, Isha Talwar talked about her role in the upcoming web series, the trajectory Mirzapur 3 is going to take and more.

Here are the excerpts:

Congratulations for becoming a part of Indian Police Force. How stoked are you for the same?

I am very happy because this is something that I have not done before. It’s a nice happy place that I get to explore from all the dark, intense stuff that has been going on for a while now. I think I needed some kind of a break and it has been a good year so far.

How did you become a part of Rohit Shetty’s cop universe?

This was probably one of the few roles that I didn’t audition for since I had to audition for everything from Mirzapur to Saas, Bahu Aur Flamingo. I don’t know how but this time I dodged the bullet of auditions.

What can you tell us about your character from the show? How is it different from all the other roles you’ve played till now?

It’s a girl next door, a happy-go-lucky kid. It’s a good role. One of those parts that people usually start with but with me it’s happening after I have been part of dark, intense projects. You really need a balance to feel normal. It’s nice to do some nicer bits and fun bits and I think that’s also the cinema that I grew up watching. So it was also something that I yearned to be a part of. I always wanted to do a typical Hindi cinema kind of thing.

What kind of prep have you undergone for the same?

For the first time, I didn’t have to go through a prep. Mirzapur was something, Bijlee was living in some village. I don’t know what all was going on. So for the first time, I am really happy that I didn’t have to prep. Because sometimes it’s nice to go on sets and figure it out. It’s better to live them in the moment.

What was it like working with Rohit Shetty?

I spent limited time with Rohit Shetty but I think it’s a very well-run set. The team he had put together has been there for many years so the kind of camradarie they have on the set, the kind of understanding they have between them is something which one would really vouch for. It really bis universe because he has his own way of going about things and it’s a bit different from other sets that I have been on. So it was a good and efficiently run set which I really enjoyed.

You did a lot of action scenes in Saas, Bahu Aur Flamingo and Rohit Shetty is one of the best action film-makers of the country. So will we get to see you do some more action on the screen?

No. I am not doing any action. I am just chilling and having fun.

How was the experience working with Sidharth Malhotra and Shilpa Shetty?

There’s a kind of energy that you cannot deny it. Unfortunately, we have these demarcations that there is an A-list and B-list and that list. But sometimes they carry that X-factor that we all keep refering to and that’s quite interesting to see how they carry themselves, how they conduct themselves. Sometimes it gets a bit like drop it now. But most of the times, it’s interesting to see them hone their craft.

Coming to your choice of scripts, they’ve all been different from one another. So what are some of the criteria set in place when it comes to choosing a project?

It has to be a good character that I am playing. Because you have to spend a lot of time on a project. From point A to point B, by the time you wrap it up, it’s been a year, year and a half. Secondly, I definitely want to invest in something that you are really seen for and I don’t think one should use too much of their mind in that sense. It has to be a decision that comes out of your heart and is intuitive. That’s a good way of going about it and that has really worked for me. And finally, the right kind of people because they can make or break the set. They don’t necessarily have to push each other all the time or they have to think alike. But it’s nice to have health debates, it’s nice to have difference of opinions. All that is good but as long as everybody is invested in the project as much as you are. Also, you have to work with people who are fit, physically also. Because it’s so draining to shoot a series for 4-5 months that if you are not physically fit then you cannot make a series. It’s very tough.

People have been waiting a long time for Mirzapur 3, especially after the cliffhanger that it ended with. What kind of trajectory will your character take in the upcoming season? How was it like shooting for Mirzapur 3?

This season is all about revenge, revenge and revenge. I don’t know why people are confused about what went down, perhaps it’s their love for the show that has taken over their minds. It’s going to be a revenge drama and like Mirzapur has new characters in an out, you get to see different sides of people all the time. So that’s what you’ll get to see. Madhuri is happy being the Chief Minister and going about her life. Personally, I am happy that Isha is Madhuri because of the whole power trip that I get to be on for a little bit. It’s an interesting trip. I would never ever do it in my own personal life but sometimes through characters, you get an insight as to what it’s like to be surrounded by 7 bodyguards. So it’s an interesting role because it’s so far from the person I am. It reminds me to never be a person of power.

Was Bijlee in Saas, Bahu Aur Flamingo a challenging role to play? Considering it had multiple layers.

The challenge was that I was the last one to be cast in the show. And I only had a limited amount of time viz-a-viz other actors. For Madhuri, I had ample time to prepare. For Saas, Bahu Aur Flamingo, I barely had 20 days and that kind of threw me off because I figured I had a lot to do in those 20 days. So I packed my bags and left for Jodhpur and I lived there. It was an immediate need and I had no choice because to understand that world in such a short time, it became a pressure.

I did what I had to at that point but I wish they had cast me earlier, it would have helped me.

How do you divide time between regional and Hindi projects? What is your main priority as of now?

To me, there is no time division or main focus at this point. After Mirzapur, it took a year to get Saas, Bahu Aur Flamingo. Again, I have not worked since November 2022, there is a dearth of projects which are coming my way. So it’s a process. It’s not about where my focus lies, it’s about the kind of stuff that I am being offered. And I am also simultaneously auditioning for. So it’s a permutations and combinations of a lot of things.

What’s next in the pipeline?

There is a very nice show on SonyLiv called Chamak. It’s an interesting show based on the Punjabi music industry. I got to play a musician so it’s a way cooler, younger skin to be in. While it’s nice to be the Bhabhi and Bahu, I am a young girl. I would like to play normal, regular girl roles because even they have layers to them. It’s nice to do cooler stuff also. I am somebody who was born and brought up in Mumbai after all. So I am going away from the Bhabhi and Bahu roles to the girl next door, to the musician, to the cool chick and those kind of parts. So Chamak is something that I am really looking forward to. It’s a good premise to be a part of.