Heital Puniwala on working with an international crew in White

Heital Puniwala is playing a pivotal role in White, which loosely revolves around spiritual leader Sri Sri Ravi Shankar. The movie is an international thriller, and the actor is quite excited to be a part of the cast and crew.

Mumbai: Asked about his reaction to working with an international crew, he said, “My reaction was a mix of shock, enthusiasm, gratitude, inspiration, and pure happiness. I felt like I was on top of the world. It was like a dream come true. A small sapling I had planted had finally grown into a big tree and suddenly bore fruit. Gurudev Sri Sri Ravi Shankar ji has given me this opportunity work on this film. That was my reaction when I found out I would be doing the international film White.”
He shared that it was an incredible opportunity and felt like it just fell into his lap unexpectedly. However, he added, “Looking back at the years of hard work and dedication I put in, it has finally fructified. I finally got this opportunity; the universe gave me what was best for me. The prayers and blessings of many people, along with my own spiritual journey, all came together.”

Heital mentioned that though there was not much difference between the styles of working when compared to Bollywood; he added, “I noticed that Spanish actors are very particular about their roles, costumes, style, and work efficiency. I saw a lot of professionalism in their industry’s culture compared to ours. It’s not that the Indian industry lacks professionalism, but it’s missing in many places.”
He continued, “Actors aren’t always treated as actors here, whereas they are highly respected there. They don’t even call junior artists ‘junior artists’; they speak to and approach them with respect. Their dedicated staff also takes good care of them. They are provided with good clothes, food, water, tea, and coffee at the right time, the same as what is provided to the main actors. That is what I really liked about the Spanish and Mexican actors, DOPs, and their work style. If we adopted this in the Indian industry, it would truly flourish.”
He also shared that working with the international team taught him small things. He said, “I learned how they perform subtle acting. Even though my character was a bit loud, they acted subtly, using only their eyes. This style of acting has started becoming more common in the Indian industry recently.”
“Many actors use their eyes to act, like the late Irrfan Khan, sir, whom I saw acting entirely through his eyes. Then there’s Kay Kay Menon, sir; these are some of the people I’ve worked with who act with their eyes. So, while there isn’t a huge difference, working with an international team definitely taught me a few new things,” Heital added.