Pavail Gulati, who is known for his noteworthy performances in the popular web series Made in Heaven and Netflix's Ghost Stories, is all set for his Bollywood debut in Thappad. Directed by Anubhav Sinha and featuring Taapsee Pannu, Thappad has been in the news ever since its trailer released recently. The actor plays husband to Taapsee's character, an educated and upper-middle-class woman who is forced to take stock of her relationship after being slapped by her partner.
Now in an exclusive interaction with PeepingMoon.com, Pavail talks about the message behind Thappad, the normalization of domestic violence, working with Taapsee and more. Excerpts from the interview:
Thappad has gained everyone’s attention ever since the trailer released. How was it to work with Taapsee Pannu and Anubhav Sinha?
Both of them have been extremely nice and welcoming towards me that at times, I was in denial that why both of them are so sweet. But I understand where they come from as both of them are outsiders and have seen the struggles of this industry. They are always up for promoting new talents and I never felt that I am not as accomplished as them. In fact, they treated me with the utmost dignity on the sets. Not just that, we even had a lot of fun while working together.
Thappad takes a serious look at the issue of domestic violence. It comes at a time when Kabir Singh has already raised several voices about male chauvinism. Have you ever been in a situation like this or seen someone close face it?
I think all of us have in our daily lives, be it with our families or our neighbours. It is not always aggressiveness when it comes to physicality but we all have seen male chauvinism in some way or the other. It is the devil that we know exists and it certainly is not very far away from us. It comes from taking people for granted.
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Taapsee recently said Thappad is this year's Pink. Just like Pink suggested 'NO means NO' when it comes to consent, Thappad has sledgehammered the message that domestic violence, even a slap, is not okay. How strongly do you think this film puts this message across?
It is going to hit hard to both genders equally and to say the least, everyone will resonate with it. Our society feels ki yeh maar peet bas gareeb ke ghar mein hoti hai but as we know, it is wrong. Abuse, be it emotional or physical, can happen with anyone and in any social standard. Thappad puts across the message that one needs to walk away from anything once he/she feels that they are not nurtured and loved. It shows that one’s dignity is of utmost importance.
Anubhav claimed that he has made this film for men, acknowledging that he wishes to witness the discussion it sparks about gender dynamics. Do you think a Thappad is normalized in the mindset of Indian men and thus needs a film on it to show that it is incorrect?
I think that it is not only an Indian concept because the whole world has witnessed it. While it is normalized in men, women too seem to have normalized it because they have gone through it so much. I would not claim that Thappad will stop any form of domestic abuse completely but it will certainly normalize the start of the talk related to gender equality. It will trigger people to know how far is very far.
How important do you think are films like these which deal with such topics?
Whenever you deal with a topic like this, it is important to put it forward in the correct way. A filmmaker needs to put forth both the sides and the audience should be able to learn a lesson from it and understand what is wrong as such films are only a projection of our society. Since people have liked the trailer, I can promise that they will love the film as well as it will blow everyone’s mind.
Thappad, also starring Ratna Pathak Shah, Kumud Mishra, Tanvi Azmi, Manav Kaul, and Dia Mirza, is scheduled to be released on February 28.
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