SRINAGAR: Bhasha Sumbli could not hide her emotions when she landed in Baramulla for shooting a Netflix movie of the same title.
For years, she has been doing and teaching theatre in different parts of the country. Away from home, yet close to home, Bhasha’s Kashmir roots have always weighed heavily on her personality.
Originally hailing from Baramulla, Bhasha had never been to her home district before, and that is why nostalgia gripped the actor when shooting started last winter. “I was nostalgic, yet I did not want it to overwhelm to the extent that it interferes with the movie schedule,” Bhasha told The Kashmir Monitor.
Bhasha plays the lead woman actor in `Baramulla’, which is set to premiere on Netflix on Friday. It marks the OTT debut of the actor, though she has played a key character in another movie, which had a theatrical release. Earlier, she had done a cameo in Deepika Padukone-starrer Chhapaak.
An alumna of the National School of Drama (NSD), she graduated in 2013 and started writing, directing, and teaching theater. “I teach acting at different universities. I write plays, do theatre, and also act in movies,” she said.
Baramulla revolves around a police officer who has come to the town to investigate the kidnapping. “First of all, it is not a horror movie. It is an investigative thriller. Actually, it flips through three to four genres. I play a female lead, a mother, and the wife of a DSP in the movie. In fact, it is my Netflix debut as an actor. I am very happy as it goes to 190 countries at the same time,” she said.
A research fellow of the Ministry of Culture, she has completed her fellowship on the operas of Kashmir’s famous poet and writer Dina Nath Nadim of Bumro Bumro fame. “I have directed and created Nadim Sahab’s opera Vitasta, which opened at SKICC in 2023. I have completed another fellowship to learn advanced acting techniques of Kerala,” she said.
Bhasha has joined an elite club of new-age Kashmiri artists who are conquering Bollywood. From `Rangeen’ to `Songs of Paradise’, from `Tanaav’ to `Saiyaara’, Kashmiri artists have made their presence felt in Bollywood. Taaruk Raina and Khalida Jan featured in the recent web series `Rangeen’ on Amazon Prime Video. A multifaceted actor who doubles up as singer and songwriter, Taaruk plays the main character of `Sunny’ in Rangeen. Likewise, Khalida Jan, who hails from South Kashmir, plays the character of Roshni in the series.