Usha Banerjee: Dance has helped me to become a better actor

Aneek Chaudhuri’s ‘Jharokh’ recently had its OTT release in the USA and the UK. The experimental film has also got released in Mexico, Canada, Australia, and New Zealand. It’s an anthology of three silent tales of desolation, solitude, and womanhood. ‘Jharokh’ has already garnered praise in Melbourne, Boston, Russia, Rome, and recently in Vienna. It stars Usha Banerjee, Husne Shabnam, and Ipsita Kundu in leading roles.
Just like the entire team, Usha is also super excited about the release. She has played the character of a victim journalist in Syria and it’s a performance that’s been appreciated throughout.
Speaking about her character in ‘Jharokh’ and how challenging the role was for her, Usha shares, “It was tough and hassle considering the contextual surroundings of the shoot. The character was agonizing and the floor had a similar bit of aura which I felt that was intentionally done by the director. I tried to keep the flavor of the agony intact; the film had been directed with a clear point of view as Aneek knew what he was doing. But playing the character demanded a lot of physical and mental tenacity that I had to put in. And ultimately, the collaboration worked pretty well.”
Usha has recently acted in ‘The Tale of a Santa and his Moth’, also directed by Aneek Chaudhuri, co-starring veteran actor Pawan Chopra. The film premiered in the Marche du Film of Festival de Cannes.
The actress further continues, “The biggest takeaway from this film is the director’s calculation who believed that it can make big globally. Initially, I did not have such notions in mind as I concentrate more on the craft and other things do not form any kind of intrusion. However, I learned that even the minutest of resources can deliver a creation for the international platform. The only thing that bothers me is, ‘Why does Aneek always have to show me in grim avatars (laughs)?’ I am very happy with Jharokh doing well globally and wish we achieve more with it.”

Usha Banerjee is a trained Bharatnatyam dancer and believes that dance has proved to be immensely significant when it comes to on-screen acting. She explains, “As we all know that in Natya Shastra, Abhinaya has been categorized into four major types: Angika Abhinaya: Use of Body and Limbs, Vachika Abhinaya: Use of song and speech, Aharya Abhinaya: Use of costumes and adornment, and Satvika Abhinaya: Use of moods and emotions. When it comes to acting in the medium of Cinema (or theatre), all these four categories can be thoroughly utilized while in dance, Vachika Abhinaya cannot be entirely utilized. So, of course, dance has throughout helped me to become a better actor, and putting my learning experiences into practicality has been indeed a gift for me. I am indeed gifted to be able to utilize all the four categories while acting in films and able to entertain the target audiences.”