Shefali Shah on playing a neurosurgeon: I haven’t dealt with a subject like Human before

Shefali Shah. Pic/Instagram

Shefali Shah has little time to bask in the praise coming her way for her heartbreaking performance in Netflix's Ajeeb Daastaans. She is instead busy prepping for her next, the Ayushmann Khurrana-starrer Doctor G that sees her as a gynaecologist. Interestingly, Human, the medical thriller that she shot for till March, also has her playing a doctor. However, the actor says that the two stories have different themes, each demanding intense prep.

"In Human, my character is a neurosurgeon. So, when we were filming the surgery scenes that required me to handle prosthetics, there was a surgeon on the set to guide me through it. Similarly, we underwent a virtual training session for Doctor G. An obstetrician-gynaecologist [was brought on board] to teach us how to use the instruments," says the actor. Considering the Vipul Shah and Mozez Singh-directed drama probes the medical scams that surround human drug testing, Shah says her portrayal had to be backed by a fair amount of homework. "I haven't dealt with a subject like Human before, so I needed to understand the technicalities. If there are [medical] terms in the script, I will pick up a [dictionary] to know what they mean. I will read up on the [specified] condition, its pros and cons because I need to know [as much as I can on the subject]."

Though she is known to be picky about scripts, Shah says 2021 is a packed year. "I usually take a lot of time between projects, but [due to the lockdown last year and the recent industry shutdown], the schedules have gone haywire."