Known to many from ‘Bigg Boss 18’, Chum is no stranger to intensity. But horror? That was uncharted territory. Still, she dove right in.
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Chum Darang is not holding back—and neither is her new show ‘Khauf’. Making her debut in the horror genre, the actress opens up about what it took to play Svetlana, a complex, fierce character that pushed her emotionally, physically, and, apparently, vocally.
“I had to scream my lungs out—literally. It gave me migraines,” Chum Darang admits about ‘Khauf’, half-laughing, half-traumatized. “One day I shot with a fever. Another day I bled during a scene. So yes, blood, sweat, and probably a few tears went into this.”
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Known to many from ‘Bigg Boss 18’, Chum is no stranger to intensity. But horror? That was uncharted territory. Still, she dove right in. “It’s actually my favorite genre, so I binge-watched everything I could get my hands on to prep,” she shared.
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But she quickly learned that watching horror and ‘acting’ in it are two very different beasts. Especially when green screens and CGI-heavy sequences come into play.
“There’s this one scene where Svetlana tries to escape her hostel—classic horror vibes—but everything around me was fake. I had to imagine the scares,” she explains. “It’s weird, but the directors made it feel seamless. Honestly, I kind of loved the challenge.”
The role of Svetlana isn’t just about shrieks and scares, though. Chum feels a personal connection to the character. “She’s a fighter, she’s loyal to her girls, and I think a lot of people—especially women—will see themselves in her.”
Adding to the excitement for Chum was sharing the screen with some serious acting heavyweights. “Rajat Kapoor, Geetanjali Kulkarni, Shilpa Shukla—are you kidding? I’ve admired them forever. I learned so much just by being around them,” she says. “Rajat Kapoor especially—I’m a big fan.”
‘Khauf’, which marks Smita Singh’s first outing as creator and showrunner, is backed by the powerhouse production team of Sanjay Routray and Sarita Patil under Matchbox Shots. With Pankaj Kumar and Surya Balakrishnan directing, the series brings together an ensemble that includes Monika Panwar and Abhishek Chauhan along with Chum’s stellar co-stars.
The series is set to premiere on April 18 exclusively on Prime Video.
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