Characters not written for Northeast people: Lin

Netflix’s recently released film ‘Axone’ (pronounced a-khu-ni) is a film about a group of people from Northeast India, living in Delhi, struggling to find a place to cook a dish for a small wedding party. This sparks conflict and comedy with their unaccustomed neighbours because the dish they want to make is pungent. 

Starring Sayani Gupta and Lin Laishram, the film not only focuses on the struggle behind preparing the dish but uses this as a synonym to explain the problems Northeastern’s have in this country. 

Showtime caught up with Lin Laishram who told us that she is more than excited to be part of a project like this. “When I read the script, I immediately told the director that it would be completely unfair if I wasn’t part of it. It’s a film that mainstream Bollywood would never make or even star in. I am so proud to be part of a story like this,” says Lin. 

Since it’s release last week on the OTT platform, the team has been receiving good feedback. She says, “The response has been overwhelming. It’s a story about a small community and to know that people from across the globe have watched and appreciated it means a lot; my heart is so full. OTT platforms such as this is a great avenue for storytellers like us.” 

Hailing from Manipur, Lin started her career as a model before she became an actress. She played the role of Bembem in Priyanka Chopra starrer ‘Mary Kom’ in 2014 and also in Vishal Bhardwaj’s ‘Rangoon’. 

She says that her journey has had its limitations too. “I don’t know if you’d call my modelling career successful but I was quite content. I knew that I didn’t want to do it forever though which is why I looked into acting. I never thought I could belong to the same industry as Kareena Kapoor, Madhuri Dixit, Amitabh Bachchan and so on. They were untouchable...unreachable!”

She adds, “That doesn’t mean that everything came easy to me. In mainstream Bollywood, there’s always a certain description of the kind of actresses you want to work with and their features. But no one ever writes a character thinking of a Northeastern. I’ve faced a lot of limitations because of that. That’s why movies like these are special.” 

Even after all her achievements she’s had, Lin makes sure that she never forgets where she’s from. She says, “I have worked international platforms and met many people, but I never touch lost with my roots. I am very clear of where I come from, I love my people and my language. At the end of the day, I come from a place where there are many successful artistes and sportsmen and women are from, so I’m proud to be part of one of them.”

She adds that films like ‘Axone’ gives people a topic of discussion. Lin explains, “People are now curious to know what is axone and what’s so special about it. Food can connect with anyone and that’s what we did with our project.” 

And even though axone is very pungent in taste, “the tastemaker is nothing different from the smell cheese everyone loves about Paris and France”.

“Dishes cooked with axone has an acquired taste but there’s nothing offensive about it. Some people can tolerate it and some can’t. And you can’t force anyone to like it,” she says.