Exclusive | Anasuya Sengupta On Starring in Dev Patel's 'The Peasant': Absolutely Mad, In The Best Way Possible'

Actor and production designer Anasuya Sengupta, who last headlined Konstantin Bojanov’s The Shameless in 2024, is next set to appear in Dev Patel's The Peasant.

Marking Patel's second directorial venture, the film will also star acting coach Saurabh Sachdeva, who joined the team in May this year.

"I think its just a series of finding myself in situations that feel unreal. I could have never imagined this would happen," said the actor, who also made history as the first Indian performer to win the Un Certain Regard Award for Best Actress at the 77th Cannes Film Festival for her role in The Shameless.

At the second weekend of the Monsoon Film Festival, curated by The Hollywood Reporter India at Nilaya Anthology, Sengupta also expressed how meaningful it has been to work alongside someone like Patel, who has had to juggle so many roles on the project — as director, co-writer and actor — to bring his vision to life.

"Before filming started, I was so curious to see how this individual (Patel) does it. He's the protagonist, it's an action film, and every other scene he's doing is an action sequence. Just being an actor in it, and the time you have to put in... (is tough). How does he do it?"

"It's a brilliant team, and it was absolutely mad in the best way possible," said Sengupta.

Touted as an international revenge-action thriller, The Peasant is headlined, directed and co-written by Patel. It is backed by the acclaimed production house A24 and marks the studio’s first-ever film production in India.

Set in the 14th century, The Peasant tells the story of a shepherd who embarks on a brutal path of vengeance after mercenaries destroy his community. As he hunts down those responsible, darker truths about his own nature begin to emerge.