In the overdose of OTT content, Vikramaditya Motwane's Jubilee has managed to stand out. It has brought back the memories of the golden era, the famous Bombay Talkies. The show has received applause from all corners and its starcast is being loved. Wamiqa Gabbi who essays the role of Niloufer has managed to win brownie points with her class acting. In a recent chat with us, the actress got candid about the show, casting, her inspiration and more. So here are the excerpts from the interview.

Why an instant yes for Jubilee?

I did not choose Jubilee, the show chose me, Niloufer chose me. Such shows do not get made every day. I am so lucky that I auditioned for it and I got the part.

How did the audition process go and how did you land up playing Nilofer?

I auditioned for it before the pandemic and I got shortlisted. Then I auditioned for the director Vikram Sir and we did the look test also the same day. My audition went very well but for some reason I got rejected. And then pandemic happened. Post the pandemic, I randomly messaged Vikramaditya Motwane sir. It was actually Aparshakti Khurrana who made me Message Vikram Sir. He asked me whether I was doing Nilofer and I said, 'no, I got rejected'. He said that nobody has been finalised yet for Nilofer and I must message Vikram sir.

So I messaged Vikram sir asking when can we meet. He asked me to meet day after but the very next day I got a call saying I have been finalised for Nilofer.

It was during the promotions that I got to know that he thought I have a lot of grace, you know like a 'achi bachii' and Nilofer's character is very different. And he said that it was only during the pandemic that he saw my reels and videos and he got to see my 'chhicchorapan' and that's when he decided to cast me as his Niloufer.

Watch Jubilee song video below:

How did you prepare for your role? Did you have any actress in mind while playing the character from the old era?

I had all the actresses in mind. Madhubala, Nutan, Nargis, Meena Kumari. I had all the actresses in my mind throughout the time. Obviously I did not have a direct reference for my character. It was very new to me and I am glad I did it. Obviously it is good to explore a character that you are completely unaware of. It was very surreal understanding her and exploring her. But for in-film scenes and songs, I saw songs of everyone like Madhubala, Nargis and more.

You recently said that you are inspired by Kangana Ranaut. Is there any character of her that you would want to do?

As an actor, she has inspired me a lot to be as good or better than her. That's what inspires me. A very good performance that make you go 'oh my god', makes you feel jealous, makes you feel motivated, makes you feel that you need to work on yourself. As an actor Kangana Ranaut has given performances like those.

If I ever think I am capable enough to figure this out on my own and I am better at my craft now then I would definitely like to do Tanu Weds Manu 2. You cannot think of anyone else doing it better than Kangana Ranaut. 'Agar yeh kar liya na toh aapko lagega ki apko aapka craft aata hai'.

On Ranveer Singh...

I also want to mention Ranveer Singh. I have worked with him as I played a very small part in 83' and I think one of those actors who simply transforms. He is like a chameleon. The inspires me to be better at my craft. The way he played Kapil Dev was simply outstanding. A personality like him, he is so loud generally, he is so expressive in life but you can actually forget him and only see Kapil Dev. That is so inspiring.

Next, Wamiqa Gabbi is going to be seen in Charlie Chopra And The Mystery Of Solang Valley which is helmed by Vishal Bharadwaj. Deets of the same coming up in next piece.