Mawra Hocane opened up about the difficulties she faced while portraying the character of Rishtina in her upcoming drama Nauroz in a recent interview with Fuschia Magazine.
When asked about the scene where her character is seen scavenging for food in the garbage, Hocane revealed that it was a real experience. “It happened, it was real. I can’t explain Nauroz right now because I don’t know who I was while performing Rishtina.”
Hocane went on to explain that she doesn’t recall much about the character or the process of playing the role, possibly because of the physical toll it took on her. “I lost a lot of weight because I knew I was playing a very young girl. I was underweight. I lost six kilogrammes, maybe that’s why I don’t remember much of it. Because I wasn’t eating anything except the necessary. I was on a calorie deficit,” she said.
Reflecting on the impact of the role, Hocane said that it has brought her a sense of grounding and changed her perspective on life. She recounted a scene where her character visits a food vendor who provides meals to the needy. Hocane explained how people hesitated to interact with her during the scene, giving her a glimpse into the daily experiences of those in need.
“People were [waving] me away because they didn’t want me to touch them, so I wondered how a regular person who looks like that must feel,” she added.
Nauroz was offered to Hocane during the lockdown when her other project, Neem, was put on hold due to her co-star Ameer Gillani’s acceptance to Harvard University for his master’s degree. The creators approached Hocane for Nauroz in the meantime, which she revealed is a 12 to 16-episode series.
Hocane expressed her excitement and gratitude over working with director Shehzad Kashmiri again. She emphasised that the opportunity felt like a blessing amidst the uncertainties of Neem’s production, despite its release on an upcoming channel Green Entertainment.
The host asked the actor if she thought that it would be risky since it’s a new channel, to which Hocane said, “It’s funny how you’re calling it risky because I was literally thanking God that I have been offered another show with Shehzad bhai. I was worried if Neem would ever be shot or not and that’s when he said that I have another project. We’ve only written three episodes of it yet, let’s do that. I was like, what I am getting another project with Shehzad Kashmiri? Wow!”
The actor expressed her enthusiasm over the experience of working on Nauroz and praised the collaborative nature of director and producer Kashmiri – who is also the creator of her previous drama Sabaat and ongoing drama Neem. She commended his ability to draw out her experiences, talent and physical strength, regardless of her state of mind. Nauroz is a 12 to 16-episode series that questions the impact of social media on human self, identity and consciousness. The first episode airs on July 13.