Ahead Of Its OTT Release, Adah Sharma Reveals How She Prepared For Her Role In 'The Kerala Story'

After being a sleeper hit at the theatres, ‘The Kerala Story,’ is finally making its way to OTT. The movie, which raised many pertinent questions at the time of its release, has now generated high anticipation among the audience. In anticipation of its OTT premiere, the lead actress of the film, Adah Sharma, shed light on her approach to portraying her character in the tear-jerking film.

In a conversation with News18, the actress delved into why she chose to take this movie up and whether she believes she did justice to her character. “I decided to be part of the project because I could be the voice of so many girls. The audience, who gave us so much love for the film, decided I did justice. It fills my heart,” she stated.

Her character of Shalini wasn’t easy to portray. More so, the movie wasn’t exactly a pleasant watch either. When asked about how she immersed herself in the character’s persona, she shared, “I obsessively watched videos on YouTube of girls in ISIS camps in Syria. I read extensively on terrorist organizations. Very disturbing videos of women and children in tankers being transported. Watching all this material traumatized me, giving me a lot of sleepless nights. It’s made me even more reclusive than I was. I spend even more time alone now.”

The 31-year-old star is unafraid of potential typecasting or being called out for doing such serious, eye-opening films, particularly with her upcoming projects like ‘Bastar’ and ‘Sunflower Season 2.’ She went on to express her gratitude to filmmakers who recognize her versatility and present her with diverse characters across varied genres.

The plot of ‘The Kerala Story’ reads, “Shalini Unnikrishnan, a woman who converted to Islam, shares her journey of aspiring to become a nurse, only to be coerced by extremist Muslims in her college who posed as friends. She was eventually manipulated into joining the Islamic State and ended up imprisoned in Afghanistan.” The movie sparked tons of controversy around the narrative. Additionally, many complaints were filed and protests were conducted in Kerala, West Bengal and Tamil Nadu at the time of its theatrical release.

Despite all that, ‘The Kerala Story’ had a worldwide gross collection of ₹303.97 crores. Produced by Vipul Shah, and directed by Sudipto Sen, the film starred Adah Sharma, Yogita Bihani, Sonia Balani, and Siddhi Idnani.

After 9 months of its theatrical release, the film will be releasing on Zee5 on February 16.