Richa Chadha opted for the method acting route for her performance as Lajjo in Sanjay Leela Bhansali's debut show, Heeramandi: The Diamond Bazaar, on Netflix India. The actor confessed in an interview with Zoom that she's a teetotaller but tried a little gin for her tough, drunken Kathak dance sequence in the series. 

What Richa said

"On the first day, I wasn’t getting it, to do the drunk dancing. So, after 30-40 takes, I thought let me have a quarter and see what happens. I did have some gin. I drank a little bit, but it made things worse. I didn’t want that lethargy in the body movement, I wanted some of it, maybe the precision can go but I didn’t want to let go of the grace,” Richa said.

“I was better off pretending to be drunk than actually getting a little tipsy. It is a technical job, no matter how much I dance, my dress is so heavy, I have to hit that mark, interact. It was fun for me to do,” she added.

Richa did 99 takes for that sequence

“I almost hit a century. You know, it's not easy. People think it's easy. Imagine that you're dancing with about 200 to 300 extras watching you, and you're unable to perform well. But when you overcome that, you feel like, ‘Wow, I didn’t know I could do this,'" Richa said on Saturday's edition of The Great Indian Kapil Show, where she appeared as a guest alongside her Heeramandi co-stars.

Richa's husband and actor Ali Fazal also lauded her performance via an Instagram post earlier this week. Ali wrote, "Only a fool would not take Lajjo and fly away !! ( Lajjo check) You are simply the best and I feel so lucky I get to share my notes with you in person .. congratulations partner on this mad success of #heeramandi . You've risen way way way above the norm you always do. See you soon! @therichachadha !!." Richa also reacted and wrote, "Am lucky luckiest girl alive thank you."

Richa and Ali are about to become parents this year.

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