Latest news with #LunchBox
Hindustan Times
02-05-2025
- Entertainment
- Hindustan Times
Nimrat Kaur on OTT Vs film industry: 'As a female actor I have got more challenging parts on OTT'
Actor Nimrat Kaur is setting the record straight when it comes to OTT platforms giving a tough competition to the film industry. The actor, who will soon be seen in Kull - The Legacy Of The Raisingghs releasing on Jio Hotstar, says that online streaming platforms are an important creative medium which have given her some of her most layered characters in her acting career. (Also read: Kull trailer: Amol Parashar, Nimrat Kaur-starrer delves into chaotic royal family drama. Watch) In an interview with Hindustan Times, Nimrat opens up about her long creative association with online platforms and said, "The thing is we should not look at it as competition because eventually it is a creative medium. We have to see that everybody is employed in a way which is inclusive. As a female actor, I have had the opportunities to play parts in web series that I have never had in movies." "I started my journey with Ekta Kapoor with The Test Case and from there till now, I have actually been able to explore some of my most cinematically challenging and layered parts on the OTT. I think the opportunities and platform has increased and that is marvellous," Nimrat added. Nimrat wowed the critics and audiences alike with her impeccable performance in Ritesh Batra's Lunch Box (2013) alongside Irrfan Khan. When asked if it is difficult for scripts like Lunchbox to come by often, the actor said, "Lunchbox is a once in a lifetime gift. It is a blessing. But I feel like with OTT and new creative voices coming to the forefront, I feel that there is more we can explore when it comes to content, today. We have got a lot more to choose from." Nimrat will be seen playing a royal, Indrani Raisingghs, who is part of a dysfunctional family in the thriller in Kull - The Legacy Of The Raisingghs. The actor looks every bit the royalty, taking inspiration from Maharani Gayatri Devi and Indira Devi, Maharani of princely state Cooch Behar of British India. The actor insists it has been one of the most challenging parts she has ever played on screen. "The secrecy, mystery and drama about a royal family that one never actually have an access to was something very attractive. It is the most challenging role I have played in my life because there are so many twists and turns, and we didn't shoot it chronologically. So it was important for me to stay close to the script every single day and keep a character arc in my mind, understanding where she is coming from and going into," the actor said. The 43-year-old actor could not stop raving about the fact that she got a chance to stay at Laxmi Niwas Palace, where the show has been shot. It gave her the time to get into the skin of the character. "For the first time, I got to stay in a location where we were shooting, that also helped me build the character and stay in the zone." The Lunchbox actor enjoyed the long walks in the lawns of the palace which helped her keep her calm. According to Nimrat, Kull is an intense marathon but her chemistry with other characters and a relaxed atmosphere at sets made her ride easy. "We used to have relaxed time between the shoots and laugh a lot because the shooting was intense and high octane with lots of drama and complex situations. Sahil Raza, the director, was so chilled out to work with which made things easier," Nimrat said. When asked what was the most difficult part to shoot, the actor, without giving any spoilers, said that it was the climax which is full of shocks and surprises. Kull also stars Amol Parashar, Riddhi Dogra, Gaurav Arora, Rohit Tiwari, and Rahul Vohra. This riveting saga is created by Ekta R Kapoor and Shobha Kapoor. Directed by Sahir Raza, and produced by Balaji Digital, the series is available to stream on Jio Hotstar from May 2.
CairoScene
02-04-2025
- Entertainment
- CairoScene
Ali El Sabaa Is Not a Playboy He Just Looks Like One
Here's what you need to know about Ali El Sabaa: he is very good-looking, very good at pretending not to know he's good-looking, and extremely good at ruining the romantic lives of fictional people on screen. In his latest film, Nogoum El Sahel, out this Eid, he plays a silk-robed, Range Rover-driving menace named Basel 'El B' (yes, really), who exists purely to disrupt a love story, wear sunglasses indoors, and look smug in linen. 'He's an a**h*le, honestly,' Ali says, cheerfully. 'But I've met him. You've probably met him too.' Ali El Sabaa isn't the kind of actor who gets chased through airports. Yet. But there's a shift in the atmosphere. After years of showing up, standing slightly off-center, and quietly stealing scenes, he's starting to outgrow just being 'around.' He's on the cusp - the tipping point, the edge of the thing. He's not quite a household name, but he's been orbiting stardom long enough to start generating his own gravitational pull. He's shared scenes with icons, yes, but he still reacts like a fan who can't believe he's not just watching Mona Zaki, but dragging someone by the hair in a scene with her. If you've seen Ali on screen - brooding, smouldering, occasionally shirtless - you may assume you've got him figured out. His roles in 'Le'bet Newton,' 'Athena,' 'Lunch Box,' 'Meen Yesada,' and 'Hala Khassa,' might've served as dramatic cues and personality indicators but the truth is you still don't. Because in real life, he's rarely tossing champagne on yachts. He's at home cooking dinner, listening to music, and gently judging your knife skills. He is, by his own admission, 'a fascist in the kitchen' and a lover boy with an emotional filing system so detailed it deserves a Dewey Decimal code. And while he's busy juggling roles as the 'Hot Man With Secrets,' Ali is out here trying to be something far more dangerous: a person with feelings. So no, he's not a playboy. He's just been mistaken for one. Repeatedly. On screen. On set. In real life. Which is what happens when you're tall, wear vintage rings, and emote like a man who's known the taste of heartbreak and artisanal olive oil. But stay with him long enough, and something shifts. The charm softens. The edges show. And you start to realise: the most interesting thing about Ali El Sabaa isn't the role he's playing. It's the one he's 'attempting' to re-cast. 'I know how I look,' he shrugs. 'I've had people call me a playboy just off the vibe. But I'm not interested in that energy. I'm a lover boy, not a playboy. There's a difference.' There is. One involves roses. The other involves ghosting. But Ali, it turns out, is more than cheekbones and smizes. 'I'm 30,' he says. 'Turning 31 this year.' In actor years, that's somewhere between 'young enough to play a college student' and 'old enough to be the love interest's therapist.' He doesn't seem fazed. 'It took time for me to land,' he says. 'But I've done the work.' And he means actual work, not just 'posted three Instagram thirst traps and took a masterclass.' We're talking stage work, bit parts, workshops, years of learning how to hit your mark while pretending to cry in 38-degree heat. He once played Thomas Humphrey - the flirtatious little brother - in The Game of Love and Chance. That's when the 'playboy energy' first showed up. And like glitter, it's proven hard to shake. 'I'm actively trying to move away from that,' he says. Meanwhile, the man still wears rings that were gifted to him by exes. A 1946 Palestine coin on a chain hangs loosely around his neck. You know. Like someone who feels things. But for all the brooding ambiguity, he's weirdly… chill. In person, Ali is the kind of guy who listens. Really listens. Like someone who's spent a lot of time alone, making pasta for one and thinking about emotional continuity in French cinema. 'I started living alone at 17,' he says. 'My parents divorced. My mum moved to the States. My dad remarried. I had to figure things out fast.' Naturally, he became the type of person who hosts dinner parties with curated lighting. 'Half for fun, half for distraction,' he says. 'But I got good at creating comfort. For myself. For others.' You can feel that precision everywhere. In the way he speaks. The way he breaks down a script. Even the way he cooks. 'My kitchen, my rules,' he grins. 'You're a sous-chef. You dice onions. You follow orders.' He's been at it since age 12. This isn't a guy obsessed with being liked. He's obsessed with getting it right. 'Every f***ing day of my life, I feel like I don't know what I'm doing. Maybe today I'm at the top. Tomorrow I'm at the bottom. You don't know. It's not a banker's job.' Especially on screen. In Athena, his most recent Ramadan show, there's a scene where his character FaceTimes his mother. The woman on the screen is his actual mum. 'We didn't shoot together,' he says. 'But the emotion was real. Distance. Longing. It felt more like remembering than acting.' He cast her himself. Texted the director. Had her audition. She got the part. It's like a therapy session with lighting and makeup. Because here's the thing about Ali: he's not in it for fame. He's in it for the feeling. 'You gather moments - joy, heartbreak, trauma - and you store them. Then, when it's time, you use them.' Like an emotional filing cabinet. But with better lighting and fewer birth certificates. He takes the same approach with Nogoum El Sahel. 'I studied men in Sahel all summer,' he says. 'The ones who think money equals charisma.' He wasn't judging them. He just wanted to understand what emptiness looks like in designer linen. His research process is three-fold. Sit. Watch. Absorb. 'I sit behind the DOP. The gaffer. I study the frame. Raccord. You can't fake a close-up. You have to mean it.' He's inspired by actors like Ahmed and Hassan Malek - guys who do the work. 'It's very anthropological what they do. They study people. Break the typecasting. That's what I want.' And sure, he's worked with big names - Mona Zaki, Taha Dessouky, Mohamed Ramadan - on shows like 'Le'bet Newton,' 'Hala Khassa' and 'Lunch Box'. He's done intense scenes. Combat. Hair dragging. But the thing that sticks with him isn't the stunts. It's how they treated him. 'They were patient. Kind. They treated me like a peer. That mattered.' As for romance, he keeps it grounded. 'I've had a normal number of relationships for my age,' he says, like someone filling out a form. 'What matters now is friendship. Romance fades. But if you're not friends - what's left?' He plays golf. Wears suits like they're part of a personal religion. Refers to his late teens as an era of 'glasses-less-ness.' He's self-aware, emotionally literate, and way too articulate for someone whose job involves pretending to be other people. He doesn't want Everest. He doesn't want to be a brand. He wants to be better. 'The end game is to get better at my craft. To inspire people. To inspire myself. To enjoy it all.' He's not who you think he is. He just plays the part - locks eyes with the industry, flashes a slow smile, and lets everyone think he's in love. He's not. He's just good at flirting. With the camera. With the crowd. With the idea of fame. But that's not the point. Not really. The point is what he does when no one's watching. The real show starts after the curtain call. Credits: Produced by: Scene Styled | MO4 Network SceneStyled Managing Editor: Farida El Shafie Photographer/Art Director: Malak El Sawi Creative Producer: Nariman El Bakry DOP: Ahmed Reda Styling: Nada Koura Wardrobe: Sandro Paris // Kenzo // Rebel Cairo 1st AC: Islam Maged Gaffer: Ahmed Sherif Sound engineer: Abanoub Fouad Location: Kom El Dikka Agrilodge, Fayoum Editorial Design: Maleka Younes Talent Manager: Menna Negm
