Radhika Madan recalls working with Irrfan in Angrezi Medium: 'Never stopped being a student'

In an exclusive interview, Radhika Madan spoke about collaborating with Shakun Batra for Lust Stories 3. She also reflected on her experiences of working with Irrfan Khan and Akshay Kumar.

Actress Radhika Madan recently featured in Shakun Batra's short film in Lust Stories 3. In the film, Radhika stars opposite Ali Fazal, with the two portraying a couple navigating the complexities of modern marriage, with intimacy at the heart of the story. Amid mixed reactions to the short film, Radhika spoke to SCREEN about working with Shakun Batra, filming intimate scenes and the protocols followed on set. She also revisited her experiences of working with Irrfan Khan in Angrezi Medium and Akshay Kumar in Sarfira.

Radhika Madan on Lust Stories 3

Collaborating with Shakun Batra was always on Radhika Madan's bucket list, and Lust Stories 3 came as a dream come true for the young actress. "It was amazing to work with Shakun. He was on my list of top 10 directors that you dream of working with. It was so easy to work with him. He is so effortless, and his writing is phenomenal. He creates a beautiful environment on set and just lets you be. He doesn't impose an emotion on his actors. It was creatively satisfying. Relationships are his arena. Shakun develops his female characters really well. The most beautiful part about the story was that it brought a woman's desire to light. There was a beautiful balance. both were pretty flawed and had their love languages. They gave their all. I loved how nobody was a villain," Radhika shared.

She also spoke about how the intimate scenes in Lust Stories 3 were filmed. "We had an intimacy coordinator. So because of that, what happens is that before going on the set, you develop a sense of trust with your co-actor and the director. It is a fully choreographed thing, like a dance performance. So there are no surprises on the day of the shoot. There is no improvisation on the day of the shoot. Everything is decided. Where you can place your hand, how you're going to move, what's going to happen - everything is pre-decided. That sense of safety that is created beforehand is something which is very important for films like these. The introduction of intimacy coordinators in our industry has really helped everybody out. It makes you shoot the scenes faster. There's a sense of trust; there is less inhibition. And it's very technical."

Radhika Madan recalls working with Irrfan Khan and Akshay Kumar

Beyond discussing her experience on Lust Stories 3, Radhika Madan also looked back on her early years in Bollywood, particularly her experience of working with Irrfan Khan and Akshay Kumar.

Radhika worked with Irrfan Khan in the 2020 film Angrezi Medium. Talking about the experience, Radhika shared, "I was too young to soak everything in at the time. I was so much under pressure to perform well that I blocked the factor of working with Irrfan Khan. Otherwise, I would have been in awe, and I wouldn't look at him like my father. So sometimes, when I think about it, it helped me perform my character well, but selfishly, as an actor, I feel that I let go of that opportunity to fully get to know him, to understand him, and just to get some suggestions and ideas."

"But I quietly learned by observing him a lot. The way he treated all the actors. I was much younger than him, and he gave me the respect of asking me how I see the scene. And I used to look left and right, wondering, is he asking me? Like, why would Irrfan Khan ask me, 'How are you looking at the scene?' That respect he gave me really made me believe in myself and instilled a sense of inner confidence that I still carry with me. He never stopped being a student on set and in life," the actress added.

Radhika Madan also recalled working with Akshay Kumar in Sarfira. She shared, "I am an actor who asks for a lot of takes, even though the director has said that they've got it. So I remember he used to make side bets with the ADs that she's gonna ask for one more take. I saw money being exchanged when I asked for one more take. But he's very disciplined; he's at it in every project. I really got inspired by him. He also knows how to perform a scene most honestly and seriously, but also has fun along with that. At that time, I was such a serious actor. I learned from him that you can also have fun along the process."

Lastly, Radhika Madan opened up about her upcoming projects. "I have a film with Maddock called Rumi Ki Sharafat. And there's another film called Sana that has done festival rounds and won a few international awards. That also might come out at the end of this year. Rumi Ki Sharafat is a proper comedy film. It's something that I've never done. Sana is a drama. Both are very close to my heart. And I can't wait for thse to come out."