Aditi Rao Hydari initially refused to play Anarkali in Taj Divided by Blood: 'Am I mad to follow Madhubala' | Exclusive

Aditi Rao Hydari has just seen the release of her new show Taj: Divided by Blood. The actress essays the role of the legendary courtesan Anarkali in the period drama which revolves around the succession drama during Emperor Akbar’s reign. In an exclusive chat with DNA, the actress opens up on why she was initially hesitant of taking up the project, how it is different from Mughal-e-Azam, and her thoughts on typecasting.

Anarkali has been immortalised by Madhubala in Mughal-e-Azam, arguably one of the biggest Indian films ever. Naturally, Aditi’s first response to being offered was ‘no way’, the actress recounts with a laugh. She says, “Initially, I said no. I was just told there are some people making this and its international team and they want you to play Anarkali. I said, ‘no way, bye!’ Anarkali must thank Madhubhala ji for playing her. Am I mad to try and do that?”

But eventually the actress came around when she met the makers and they were able to convince that their show is not Mughal-e-Azam. “I actually forgot about it till Ron (Scalpello), the director came and spoke to me. That’s what made me want to be a part of it because the way they were looking at the story was like this global family drama. Because their cultural context is different, there aren’t looking at Akbar, Anarkali, and Salim. They are looking at the succession and various their dynamics including the queens. Of course, the love story is a very important part of what happens and Salim’s journey. It was not even trying to be Mughal-e-Azam. Because Mughal-e-Azam is too perfect as a film,” shares Aditi.

The director and writers of Taj: Divided by Blood are not Indians. Aditi agrees that them not having the baggage of Mughal-e-Azam’s legacy helped them go for a different approach. However, Aditi is someone who has watched the epic countless times. How did she manage to be free of Madhubala’s influence in her performance? “You can’t better Madhubala ji,” she replies, “Anarkali, and the way people talk about her is as if she was descended from heaven, this mythical beautiful creature. But I am human. And I think they (the show’s makers) also treated her like that, like flesh-and-blood with a little sunburn.”

And once the shoot began, Aditi says she was able to put these comparisons out of her head. “Once I walk onto the set, I don’t think that I am stepping into somebody’s shoes. One, I can’t, and two, I am not,” she says. However, the actress is aware that the comparisons will happen when people watch the show. To that, she simply says, “Every comparison, I will accept with humility and as a blessing. To be compared to this legendary, goddess-like actress is a blessing.”

With Taj, Heeramandi, and Jubilee, this year, Adti has three web series that are all grand, opulent period dramas. When you ask her if she is wary of being typecast, the actress takes a deep breath and says, “Who wouldn’t want these kinds of roles? If Sanjay Leela Bhansali (the creator of Heeramandi) wants me to be the heroine in every film of his, I would do it.” However, Aditi does talk about the prospect of typecasting. “But 100% I don’t want to be typecast because then somebody is putting you in a box. I would like to different kinds of work because that’s the fun of being an actor. I feel if people are creative or offer me a challenge, I will take it. Yes, I am doing a number of period dramas this year but even the eras are not the same, so it’s very different,” she says.

Taj: Divided by Blood released on Zee5 on March 3 to mixed reviews but praise for Aditis performance. Her other two shows and a film – Gandhi Talks – are lined up for release later in the year.