All set to premiere on Prime Video, on April 18, Monika Panwar starrer Khauf left the audiences intrigued with its trailer. Essaying the role of Madhuri, a girl from Gwalior who comes to Delhi in search for freedom, in the gripping horror-thriller-suspense series, she along with the writer of the show Smita Singh and seasoned actor Rajat Kapoor sat down with Mashable India for an exclusive chat.
From opening up about what the show has to offer, to sharing recommendations of many other psychological thrillers, the trio opened up about their experiences, amid chuckle and giggles on Monika’s supernatural experiences. Kapoor even shared a glimpse of what happened behind-the-scenes during the shoot of the iconic fight scene in Kapoor & Sons (2016).
Take a look at the excerpts from the interview;
So, I watched the screeners of the first three episodes shared with us before coming here… I’m curious to know apart from what was shown what more does the show have to offer
Smita Singh: Khauf is based on the lives of these women, staying in a working women’s hostel in Delhi. What we have tried to do with Khauf is to make their everyday fear, the everyday paranoia that comes with women’s lived experiences into something tangible. The emotional and psychological weight of constantly being stalked, followed. The fear of that. We tried to make it into a specific horror for them. Make it a tangible, terrifying reality for them. In the outside world, it does collide with your interiority. How it chips away at the confidence of a young girl, who stepped into a big city.
Today we have so many people coming, so many youngsters coming into the big economy, coming from small towns, coming into big cities. How do they survive? Where does this resilience come from? And what is terrifying about their hostile, alienating experiences in these chaotic urban centres? That’s where we derive Khauf from. We are hoping that after people watch it, they will realise that it is this collision that later leads to us understanding the savagery of that existence
In terms of writing such kinds of stories… What was the thought process behind writing it? What inspired you?
Smita Singh: Delhi is my karmabhumi, and I lived in and around these working women hostels. I was from Budelkhand, and there were women from all over India, in those places. I constantly saw, heard, and witnessed a lot of stalking, a lot of violence. When I was in FTII (Film and Television Institute of India), I was thinking about what were the stories I wanted to tell, this was really at the top. I wasn’t finding the right lens to look at the story. When I thought of horror, I thought this is exactly the right combination. This is the only way I can tell these stories.
Monika, you have worked in shows like Jamtara, films like Dukaan… how different was it working in Khauf?
Monika Panwar: The films are different, so of course the experiences are also different. This is the first time I’m doing something in horror. As an actor, I personally think, when you work in the horror genre aapke paas ek bahut bada spectrum hota hai, to perform something like this. Just to show your skills. Jab aap iss waale genre mein kaam karte ho, toh I think there is a lot of scope as an actor. With the preparation and everything, the process is quite thrilling as well as challenging, at the same time.
You worked with Chum Darang and the other girls how was your camaraderie with them off-screen
Monika Panwar: I think aap jab ek group mein hote ho, toh aap ka ek different energy hota hai. So you just have to be there. Bahut kam time tha where I was with two or three characters. But jabhi girl’s hostel mein jo bhi scenes perform ho rahe hai, it was wonderful working with them, totally different energy. You are just reacting to what’s happening with these people. Sabke characters mein apna apna ek inner conflict hai. Toh jab aap kisise bahar interact kar rahe ho toh I think woh ek different level pe chala jaata hai.
Coming back to you, Smita Ma’am, the opening credit scene is very goosebump-worthy… it gave the audience a gist to the entire show without revealing much. What was the thought process behind its conceptualization?
Smita Singh: I’m so happy that you are talking about it. Nikon Basu, who did this with his two great animators, did a fabulous job. It was actually Pankaj Kumar’s (director of Khauf) idea to go with the painting kind-of animation that we have. Because he is so good with this. The way Pankaj has erected this world, it was so hard for me to say… this one or that one or this one, because he can create visuals, frames that stick with you for a long time. They are so evocative.
We were trying to bring a lot of these things to tell this story, but also keep it in a way that it doesn’t tell you the entire story, but gives you the essence of what we were trying to do with this. Nikon was really amazing and he worked really hard with this. What we finally got was bone-chilling, along with Alokananda Dasgupta’s (music composer) music. I’m very proud of that opening credit.
Rajat sir, we have seen you in many roles until now, they have always created quite an impression on the viewers. When you are offered roles, what are the main criteria you look for to decide that yes, this is something that I want in my filmography?
Rajat Kapoor: Mostly three things, good script, good role, good director. If out of these three, any two are good then I’ll do it. If it is a good role, good script, but a bad director, I’ll do it. If it’s a good script, good director but a bad role, I’ll still do it. Mostly we don’t write good scripts, unfortunately. So, when you get a chance to be a part of something that’s well written, you jump at it.
In this case, not only was the script well written, the role was great. I have not played something like this before. I was really excited when I got a call from Smita and Pankaj. I had gone to meet Pankaj and Smita, who was unwell and had connected through a Zoom call. I was super excited. To be a part of this. It happened in a kind of a hurry, just two weeks before shooting began. I got really lucky to play the role.
You said that you haven’t played this kind of a role before, what stuck out to you about Hakkim’s character in Khauf?
Rajat Kapoor: He is pure evil, this character. The way it was written, it is evil yet very real. You can almost place that person somewhere. It doesn’t happen, especially in horror, either you are a ghost or a monster. But this monster is kind of real. It was interesting.
This might be a little out of context, but the fight sequence in Kapoor & Sons with Ratna ma’am, Sidharth and Fawad often keeps trending on Twitter as the audience finds it quite relatable. I want to know what kind of prep work the 4 of you went through before filming the sequence?
Smita Singh: It’s a fabulous scene.
Rajat Kapoor: Some scenes work out well, this is one of those scenes. There is no prep work involved, you just shoot it like any other scene. Whatever is required of that scene, that day, you do it. You rehearse it four times and sometimes the lines overlap, but it just works out.
And was it shot in a single take?
Rajat Kapoor: No, there are many cuts, it’s not a one take thing.
Monika, were there any reference points or performances you studied before starting the shooting of the series or preparing for it?
Monika Panwar: I remember when I was preparing for my role in Khauf, I watched lots and lots of horror films. Day light mein I used to prepare and then at night, ek chunk rakha tha, especially to watch horror films. I have watched almost all of the horror films. Ari Aster ka Midsommar (2019) yaa Hereditary (2018) are my favourites. The Babadook, which Smita suggested, and Sandra Hüller starrer Requiem (2006). If you see the performances in all these films, it’s amazing. It’s not just the jumpscares, it’s not about the ghost essence. Because we are going through a person’s personal instincts and their inner conflict. When those inner conflicts meet an unseen force, there is a very thin line in between. That is when you don’t know, if it’s your mind playing games or if there really is something.
Rajat Kapoor: That becomes more horrifying, actually.
Monika Panwar: Yeah, and for me this thing works. I always find these kinds of psychological horrors very intriguing, because of the psychic of the characters since you kind of get attached to their journey. There were lots of films that I watched, that time.
Talking about the genre of the show, have you ever experienced something supernatural that you would like to share with your fans?
Rajat Kapoor: (jokingly turns towards Monika) Tumhare taraf dekhke lag raha hai, hoga kuch
Monika Panwar: I come from the hills. Toh wahan pe…
Rajat Kapoor: (interrupts Monika) Hota rehta hai, roz aate hai bhoot.
Monika Panwar: Haan, hota rehta hai. When I go back home, I try to avoid wearing very bright colours.
Smita Singh: Really?
Monika Panwar: Haan, matlab agar aap waise kisi jagah par jaa rahe ho, if you are going in a deep forest, you cannot do certain things.
Rajat Kapoor: (interrupts Monika) Pakad lega koi
Monika Panwar: These are all local myths, ki kuch ho jaayega wahan pe. Bahut saari fascinating and mysterious jagah hai jaise ki Khait Parvat, in Uttarakhand, it is called the “land of fairies.” Wahan pe you cannot wear bright colours. If you are going somewhere, you cannot make noises. You have to wear neutral colours, talk in whispers and everything.
Smita Singh: I think it’s very interesting, ki log isolation se kitna darte hai. In isolation, you can hear yourself think, and that is a deepest fear. In isolation you create your monsters so you don’t have to look within.
Rajat Kapoor: There is also a fear of “am I going mad?” or “am I going nuts?”. A huge fear.
These days many filmmakers as well as actors share their recommendations on social media on what they are watching. Do you guys have any recommendations for the audience?
Smita Singh: Roman Polanski’s Repulsion (1965) is something that everyone should watch. I love that film.
Rajat Kapoor: I was at FTII the other day and I saw Rear Window (1954) and Vertigo (1958) after 30 years, on a big screen. Oh my god! What fun! Especially the Rear Window, to watch it on the big screen. I think people should really get out of their laptops and phones, and go back to cinemas to watch everything. Everything! There is a lot playing. There is an Iranian film called The Seed of the Sacred Fig (2024), a beautiful film. It was there for two shows in a theatre. So if you just keep looking, there is always something playing.
Smita Singh: They’ll call you boomer for that. You can’t watch here, you have to watch it there. That’s how I met him, you know. He was in a screen writing class in Bangalore, where I was. All software engineers and me, during the class. And he asked, “Have you guys seen City Lights?” I had watched the film, but I wasn’t going to raise my hand, if the rest didn’t. He looked around and loudly said, “Sheeesh.”
Rajat Kapoor: Shame on you! (starts chuckling)
Smita Singh: Everyone was so scared. So, I don’t want to take your recommendations now. (joking)
