‘Sui Dhaaga’ Shows You What a Solid Supporting Cast Can Do

We have an incredible ensemble of supporting cast actors now.

For a long time in Hindi cinema only the lead actors would have well written roles (for the most part not even that) and the supporting cast would be relegated to being caricaturish. They would be slotted into being either a villian, or the hero’s sidekick or the heroine’s sister, or the weepy mother. Of course a lot of these roles became memorable - think Nirupa Roy’s multiple turns as the sobbing mother or Shakti Kapoor as the lascivious villian or Reema Lagoo as the strong, dutiful mother. But these parts were mostly one dimensional and in most films, the supporting parts were quite forgettable.

As I watched Sui Dhaaga I realised that the world that director Sharat Katariya was trying to create of this lower middle class family in Chanderi was believable because of its characters. Not just because Anushka Sharma and Varun Dhawan slipped into their roles as Mamta and Mauji effortlessly, but also because of the characters that surrounded them. These guys make our stars seem believable because they fit into the environment of the film like a glove.

You wouldn’t care for Mauji if Raghubir Yadav hadn’t played his condescending father who only finds flaws in him. You’d remember Yadav as Bhura, the poultry farmer in Lagaan. He’s done a bunch of roles since then in films like Peepli Live, Piku, Newton and more recently even the Netflix film Love Per Square Foot. He has this chameleon like quality that lets him slip into every role with ease.

One of the triumphs of Sui Dhaaga is that the film creates so many such memorable tertiary characters. Yamini Das, who plays Varun Dhawan’s mother, in the film is terrific. There’s this recurring dialogue of hers where she calls out to her daughter-in-law Mamta in a particular tone - it made me chuckle every time she said it.

But the best scene in the film is when she’s getting a heart attack and has fallen to the ground but asks her husband if the clothes were ironed!

Das is absolutely adorable, in spite of the fact that she’s sometimes a hindrance to Mamta and Mauji’s relationship.

Another find is Manukriti Pahwa who plays Mauji’s sister-in-law, Kumud. She plays a foul-mouthed, entitled woman who controls her husband. This comes across in small ways - like when she’s handing over her child to Mamta almost assuming that she was free enough to take care of her or when she challenges Mauji to fight with her. These layers wouldn’t have been as clear if not for her pitch-perfect performance. Other memorable characters are Namit Das as Guddu the greedy middleman, or Pooja Sarup as the pretentious fashion designer Harleen Bedi. Watch that scene where she’s just stolen a design from Mauji and then proceeds to talk to someone on the phone about how she wants to encourage rural tailors. She’s terrific.

These actors make Sui Dhaaga an immersive experience. In the last few years, more and more films have had interesting supporting parts. Katariya’s previous film also boasted a strong ensemble with actors like Seema Pahwa, Alka Amin and Sheeba Chadha. Pahwa in particular has been having a good run with interesting characters, or rather she makes them interesting. She played Bhumi Pednekar’s playful mother in Shubh Mangal Saavdhan and a paranoid mother to Kriti Sanon’s careless Bitti in Bareilly Ki Barfi. On paper these might not have seemed as engaging, but Pahwa who has been a theatre veteran, brings these women to life.

Another actor who has benefitted from great writing and his incredible acting prowess is of course Pankaj Tripathi. Having been under the radar for years, his talent has now come to the fore with films like Bareilly Ki Barfi, Newton, Nil Battey Sannata and recently Stree. You can see his range when he plays the corrupt officer Atma Singh in Newton or the paranologist in Stree. Actors like Tripathi and Pahwa add freshness and zing to scenes that might otherwise seem ordinary. But does this promise better roles for them?

Pahwa seemed skeptical and had said in an interview:

We need to be given good roles, and more importantly the director should be interested in your performance. He should conduct workshops, discuss with us. When Aankhon Dekhi released, I thought things would change but they didn’t. I hope it does now but you never know.

Seema Pahwa, Actor

Tripathi who is riding high on the success of Stree seemed more optimistic,

Earlier films used to revolve around only main leads, but now it has changed. Every actor in the film gets due importance and credits. Role of supporting actor is as equal as the role of protagonist in the films.

Pankaj Tripathi, Actor

This trend is however a step in the right direction and one can only hope that it is sustained. What we want eventually are people who we can relate to and with actors like Raghubir Yadav, Yamini Das, Pankaj Tripathi and Seema Pahwa, our hopes are running high.