In the past few years, she has done several screen tests with Tahir Raj Bhasin for different projects. But it looks like fate had a different plan for them. It is only with the thriller, Yeh Kaali Kaali Ankhein that Shweta Tripathi Sharma has united with Bhasin. Revealing that she watched his breakout film Mardaani (2014) during the lockdown last year, Tripathi says, “Tahir is a gem of a guy. He inspires me to do better in every scene. Shooting [in the new normal] was special because [my last offering] The Gone Game was shot virtually, with the director giving cues over Zoom calls. I hadn’t met my co-stars on that project.”

The Netflix web series, directed by Sidharth Sengupta, comes at a crucial point for her — after being part of intense dramas like Laakhon Mein Ek 2, Mirzapur 2 and The Gone Game, Tripathi says it is delightful to shift gears and play a happy-go-lucky character. “I love dramas. [That said], keeping the drama intact, I would love to do happier roles here on. I realised it while filming a college scene for Yeh Kaali Kaali Ankhein, where I had to be happy and in love.”