I love the fact that Kalki Koechlin, one of our most versatile actors, does not fit into a box. She has deftly carved a place for herself, defined by her unusual lineage. Being “different’’ in an industry that favours conformists, especially female actors who seem to emerge from the same mould, Kalki has always stood out, as much for her unusual looks as the roles she shines in.
She bills herself as a “French actress and writer’’, but is so much more, as I discovered over dinner in Chandigarh, where we were invited to a well-curated Lit Fest by Chitkara University.
Dressed in an oversized black blazer, fresh off a flight from Goa, Kalki appeared without make-up, exuding an unpretentious demeanour. At 41, she is as busy as she chooses to be, picking her professional assignments mindfully, given her top priority—Sappho, her six-year-old daughter with Israeli partner Guy Hershberg, a talented musician, with a hectic concert schedule across Europe.
Kalki Koechlin | AFP
Over a shared bowl of Pad Thai, Kalki and I chatted animatedly, mainly about the challenges faced by women professionals as they navigate the choppy waters of domestic responsibilities and demanding careers.
Puducherry-born Kalki comes with a fascinating back story, which, I am certain, she can fluently narrate in four languages—Tamil, French, Hindi and English. Her parents, who were devotees of Aurobindo, made Puducherry their home (they divorced when Kalki was 15). Kalki has two half-brothers, with whom she shares a good relationship. We delved into the dynamics of being a part of the blended, modern, global family, with young children growing up amidst a widening circle of relatives separated by more than six degrees. Like her daughter Sappho, who attends a formal school in Goa, that comes with a proper uniform and standard rules. “It is important for kids to understand boundaries, and we make sure Sappho knows what those are. Screen time is not forbidden, but carefully monitored. As is her intake of candy and salt. We believe in moderation and basic ground rules. Living in Goa, with access to a garden and greenery, a relatively cleaner environment than Mumbai’s, was a conscious choice,” she says.’’
Kalki’s career has been interesting from the word go. Her debut film Dev. D. (2009), opposite Abhay Deol, was an unconventional, contemporary take on the classic Devdas, with Kalki playing Chanda (Chandramukhi). She was learning Hindi at the time, and used to mug up her dialogues with the help of a tutor. The immensely popular Amit Trivedi song ‘Emosanal Attyachar’, created reverberations across India, and soon Kalki was receiving interesting offers from filmmakers keen to explore her histrionic potential.
I admired how comfortable Kalki is in her own skin—there’s zero artifice. Currently, she is studying Hebrew and finding it difficult. She wants her mother-in-law to leave Israel (her home is on the Lebanon border), and live with them in Goa. That’s not happening—her mother-in-law does not want to abandon her homeland regardless of the strife in the region.
Kalki is an activist and fights for gender equality using her voice and stature to articulate her concerns. “Another baby?” I ask her, and she laughs: “Sappho is more than a handful. Raising her is the best thing I have done in life.’’ Looking forward to whichever ‘baby’ Kalki delivers next!
X@DeShobhaa, Instagram@shobhaade