Well-received by the internet-audience, Singh is also trending online due to her recent short film Lovey Dovey in Flat 60 hrs directed by Adeeb Rais. In conversation with Guardian 20, Nidhi speaks about her internet stardom and her love for acting.
Q. When and how did the collaboration with the TVF people happen for you?
A. This was a long time ago. If I recall correctly, it was around 3-4 years ago. I had met Nidhi Bisht during a play and we had a very brief meeting. We didn’t know each other very well. And after a year or so, she was directing her play and she needed one more actor for her play. We had a common friend who was already in the play so he suggested my name to her. I read the script and started working on the play directed by her. And when the show happened, Arunabh (Arunabh Kumar is the founder of The Viral Fever) had come to watch the show. And Nidhi Bisht already knew them, she showed me some of their videos. Rowdies and Hostel MasterChef TVF Qtiyapa had just come up then. I knew who they were. But then they came and watched my play and asked me to work with them on a sketch for Emotional Atya-Charge. This was my first collaboration with the team.
Q. So, Permanent Roommates happened after that?
A. Permanent Roommates happened after a year or so. Its first season came out at the end of 2014. I had known them for over a year before that. With other sketches, they would tell me we are going to do this and I would go and do it but with Permanent Roommates, we did a proper reading as they were looking for a long format this time. They were also looking for other actors, so they also had an audition.
Q. You are now an internet sensation because of your web series. Did you always want to be an actor?
A. Yes, I think I was very taken by movies when I was studying in Allahabad. And it was a very far-fetched idea to become an actress there. I was very active in co-curricular activities and I was sure about what I wanted to with my career, especially when I started thinking about it. I was a science student but I didn’t want to go for engineering or so after that. I came to Bombay because I wanted to see the city and also because I wanted to take on the challenge. I did my Bachelors in Mass Media and specialization in advertising. When I came to Bombay, I was 17. And I was still thinking if becoming an actor could be a possibility for a person like me who had no connections and didn’t have a house here. Everyday logistics never made sense to me that time. But then it happened. It was a very slow process. I finished college and I was an assistant director and during that time, since I had saved some money as well, I decided that I had to give it a try.
“The exciting part was that it was going to be shot in a small town of Himachal Pradesh. And pulling it off in 60 hours was also a very different experience.”
Q. Your character Tanya became a rage on the internet. How similar or different is Tanya’s character from you?
A. Tanya is very different from me. I would rather say she is a better version of me because she is a lot more sorted and calm person. I am not a very calm person. I am more goofy than her. I am more comical than her in real life. She is very sober. But I have my own moods. It doesn’t mean that I don’t think like her. Also, the characters in this web-series are so realistically portrayed, that could be the reason that why it got so popular.
Q. You will be next seen in Lovey Dovey in Flat 60 hrs. Could you tell us about this?
A. Lovey Dovey is a sweet little story. It is very real and I was very happy with the script. The moment I read the script I decided that I would do this. Also, another exciting part was that it was going to be shot in a small town of Himachal Pradesh. And pulling it off in 60 hours was also a very different experience. The weather conditions were very challenging but the team was very supportive and we finally did it.
Q. Do you think humour comes to you easily?
A. I think I am goofy person. I go for some comical thing in every situation and I am drawn to funny people. It comes naturally to me, I think so, but I can be the lamest person in the room when it comes to jokes. I like humour a lot. But humour is not very easy
to pull off.