November has brought a new person and a new story into Shraddha Kapoor’s life. On November 1, the actor kicked off the shoot of Eetha, a biopic of legendary Tamasha artiste Vithabai Bhau Mang Narayangaonkar, near Nashik. But becoming Narayangaonkar — the famed singer and dancer, who had an illustrious career spanning over three decades — is no cakewalk. Word is that before heading to the set of Laxman Utekar’s directorial venture, Kapoor trained in the dance forms of Lavani and Gavlan for three months.
Sources tell us that Kapoor’s Maharashtrian roots made her Utekar’s top choice for the role. “With her mother Shivangi Kolhapure being Maharashtrian, Shraddha is deeply steeped in the culture. Another advantage was her dancing skill since it formed a big part of Vithabai’s life story. Shraddha picked up Lavani and Gavlan, the two folk dance forms that originated in Maharashtra. They are widely used in Tamasha, which traditionally combines storytelling with singing, dancing, and satire,” says a source.
Through Eetha, spanning the 1950s to 1980s, Utekar wants to introduce the audience to Narayangaonkar’s life story — how the Pandharpur-born artiste joined her family troupe at a young age and was driven to regain her family’s lost glory when her father fell on hard times. Soon, she tasted success with her performances. Even though she achieved fame and was honoured with the President’s Award in 1957 and 1990, she was reportedly in financial distress in the last years of her life.
Earlier this week, the unit began shooting in Aundhewadi, a village 50 kilometres away from Nashik. Sequences depicting Kapoor as Narayangaonkar in her prime are being captured in the first leg. The source elaborates, “Shraddha is seen wearing a saree in kashta style, in the dance sequence that is currently being shot. Stylist Sheetal Iqbal Sharma did extensive research for the period film, including understanding the kind of sarees Vithabai favoured. After the week-long shoot, the team will film in Solapur, Satara, Nashik, and Kolhapur throughout November and December. Art directors Amit Ray and Subrata Chakraborty have zeroed in on all real locations. Barring a 10-day break in December-end, the director wants to shoot continuously till March.”
Randeep Hooda and Mohammed Zeeshan Ayyub will be seen in crucial roles. Atul-Ajay have composed for the musical.