‘Dame Judi Dench, Dame Maggie Smithhey were like little girls'

Actress Lillete Dubey admits she was bowled over by the professionalism of Hollywood veterans Dame Judi Dench and Dame Maggie Smith while shooting with them. And rightly so. “There’s this scene between me and Dev (Patel), where Maggie just has to utter one line, off the camera. She sat there in the sun from 8 in the morning to 1 pm, till we  finished our shot, just to give me the cue! Same with Judi, who waited for hours to make her entry at the end of the scene,” says an impressed Lillete. She is elated to be part of the British film The Best Exotic Marigold Hotel, shot in Rajasthan, with a super-stellar cast that includes — Dame Judi Dench, Dame Maggie Smith, Tony Wilkinson, Bill Nighy, Penelope Wilton, Tena Desae and Dev Patel. The fact that John Madden, of Shakespeare in Love fame, directed the film, made her go for the audition — something that she had stopped doing long ago.

“I’ve been a huge fan of John since the time I started watching his TV series Inspector Morse. I loved this film’s script. And to be in the film that has phenomenal actors like Judi Dench and Maggie Smith just feels amazing,” confesses Lillete, adding that she’s happy to have played an important part, even though the film  focuses mostly on the story of the lives of the British actors. “It’s about rediscovering life — someone’s lost money, someone’s looking for love, another one has lost a loved one — these are people at a certain age who have come to India for different reasons. The emotions are relatable,” she informs.

What fascinated Lillete the most is the fact that the actors are so focused and good-tempered: “I think it comes with being secure in what you do. Even though I didn’t share screen space with all of them, we chatted so much and they were all so encouraging.” Lillete laughs, as she recalls, “I went shopping and got these lovely, colourful Rajasthani bangles for the women on the set and they just loved them! Judi and Maggie were excited like little girls — I realised women are women all over the world.”