Kalki Koechlin says global productions are ‘shaant’ compared to ‘chaos’ in India due to better working hours

ASk Kalki Koechlin what her 2025 has been the likes of, and rap comes the response, “ break than 2024, hopefully worsened than 2026.” The actor, who starred in Nesippaya in Tamil and the web series Bhay: The Gaurav Tiwari Mystery on Amazon MX Player, wishes she had a ‘little more work’ this year. That’s not to say she wasn’t busy. “I adopted two puppies, gardened with my daughter, travelled to places like New York and Japan, and have done a lot of work on my mental health,” she tells Hindustan Times in an interview.In a freewheeling chat, Kalki discusses her upcoming film, Her Song by John M Keller, and how playing a Franco-American woman reminded her of her French roots. She also shares her thoughts on the differences between international productions and Indian ones, and more. Excerpts.Her Song reminded Kalki of her French rootsKalki says that when John sent the script of Her Song her way, some moments had her in stitches. “It’s a very quirky writer’s comedy…very verbose. There were these really fun moments which had me in stitches. I like John’s writing a lot, and he’s been sending me scripts for a long time,” she explains when asked about the project.The actor might have been born in Pondicherry to French parents, but playing a Franco-American writer was relatable, she says. “As someone with a French background, playing Olivia (her character) was exciting. France is not where I grew up, but she could very well be me, going back to my ancestral village and discovering more about my family’s history. I could resonate with that,” adds Kalki.Bats for tight crews, structured hoursAfter working on Her Song, Kalki says the difference between an international production and an Indian one is quite clear. “The fun and coolest part was how tight and concise the crew was. Here, we never have fewer than a hundred people on set at any time. It can be chaotic and noisy where you’re trying to concentrate,” she explains, adding, “There’s a lot of shaant (peace) there, and we could learn from that. As for them, I think they could learn from us how to heighten emotion without it feeling over-the-top.”Kalki also points out that Indian productions tend to work overtime without pay. “Rarely has my 12-hour shift here ended or begun on time. It’s even more exhausting for the crew who work longer hours. Even when shooting for Goldfish (2023) in London, there were strict rules for work hours, one-hour lunch breaks, and getting every seventh day off. I believe we can learn a great deal from that to create a happier set. The chaos we work with here isn’t necessarily healthy for creative work,” she says.The need for more family-friendly filmsKalki says that after the birth of her daughter Sappho in 2020, with Israeli musician Guy Hershberg, she has devoted most of her time to her family. “I’ve been living under a rock and don’t watch a lot of films in theatres at the moment. I only go to the theatres when there’s an animated film releasing, and it makes me wish for more family-friendly releases. I miss going to the cinemas and watching a good comedy, those are quite fun too,” she says.The actor too wishes she gets to do work like that in 2026. “Her Song will be my next release, it will be screened at film festivals before the theatres. I am shooting in Bombay and Calcutta now for a show I cannot speak about yet. But I just wish for a nice comedy to come my way. That’s what’s missing from my life,” she ponders, rounding off.