“To now be a part of a film like Uunchai, I finally feel life coming full circle”

In this exclusive and intimate interview taken exclusively for Mayapuri and that bollyy.com, NEENA GUPTA tells JYOTHI VENKATESH it was Tabu who had suggested her name for the role that she did in Badhai Ho

Whether it was in the 70’s or for that matter now after Badhai Ho and Mulk, It has always been a great pleasure to meet and converse with Nina Gupta, who is now all set to be seen in a film with Big once again after GoodBye, though not opposite him but with Boman Irani who is essaying the role of her husband. I met her for this exclusive interview, at the office of Rajshri Pictures which has made Uunchai with a galaxy of senior artistes like Amitabh Bachchan, Danny Denzongpa, Anupam Kher, Neena Gupta and Sarika besides Parineeti Chopra.

What is your role in Unchai?

I play the role of a housewife called Samina. I play the typical Indian housewife of Boman Irani, who plays the role of my husband Javed. My entire focus is on my family and I look after my husband and am focused on his health

How tough was it as an actor for you to play the role?

Since I am not like that in my real life, it was quite difficult to get into the skin of my character in Uunchai but all said and done, a role in a role and it was easy since the writing was easy and so were the situations as well as dialogues

Isn’t it for the second time that you are sharing the same screen frame with an actor of the stature of Mr Bachchan?

Yes. It was in GoodBye which was released early this year, that I got the opportunity to play the wife of Mr Bachchan. Uunchai is my second film with a legendary actor like him.

Is it true that you landed the role in Badhai Ho only after you had written in Facebook that you are not happy with the kind of roles?

No, Far from it. It was after I acted in films like Mulk and Sandeep Aur Pinky Faraar that I feel my luck went through a big makeover and I started getting good roles from Badhai Ho onwards. I would only say that to each one his or her own luck. Incidentally, though the makers were considering quite a few names of actresses for the role, that I played in Badhai Ho, I was zeroed in after Tabu had suggested that I be cast in the film to Amit, Frankl;py speaking, if only Badhai Ho had not happened, I would have been nowhere as an actress in the film industry.

Can you tell me in what way have you grown as an actor since it is almost 42 years since you had started acting, way back in the early 80’s?

I confess that it has taken me a really long time to really grow as an actor because I was lucky that I was able to get opportunities to display my acting prowess very late in life.

Come on, you are only kidding Nina!

Frankly! Because earlier in life I was mostly getting the kind of roles which only required me to be a glorious prop in films which did not at all take me anywhere. I was noticed only for my work in TV serials like say Yatra and Saans. How can one grow as an actor, if one does not at all get a chance to prove oneself? I had to end up being satisfied with one dialogue here and one dialogue there early and never really derived satisfaction as an actor.

However, you have been a major part of several TV shows!

Yes. I admit that I had a lot of good TV shows but frankly speaking, I confess that I had hardly got any chance to show my talent as an actress. However thr bitter truth is that it was always Shabana Azmi, Smita Patil, and Deepti Naval who were seen as the face of art-house cinema, and even though Shyam Benegal, Govind Nahiliani knew me, it is sad that they never saw me as a commercially viable actor.

In what way do you think the industry has changed over the years?

To tell you the truth, it is very different today especially since there are many more platforms today and almost each and every one is actually having work and every actor today is quite busy as different kinds of contents are being made and what’s more they are being welcomed with open arms too by the viewers.

You have been a part of not only TV shows but also films, plays as well as various web series. Given the choice, which medium would you really like to be a part of?

Look here. I want to continue to act because that’s not just my passion but also my lifeline. I want to act in possibly each and every medium whether it is films or TV or for that matter OTT.

In how many web series have you acted till date?

Till date, I have been a part of popular web series like Panchayat and Masaba Masaba and right now I am keenly looking forward to be part of many OTT platforms

If I am not mistaken, you are also a part of two films which are quite different from one another. Can you tell me more about those projects?

Right now, I am proud to be part of two different films. They are Baa which is being directed by Hardik Gajjar in which my co-actors are Kabir Bedi and Vatsal Sheth. The other film is Shivshastri Balboa Sabun directed by acclaimed Indian American director Ajayan Venugopalan and produced by Kishore Varieth & UFI Motion Pictures. Shiv Shastri Balboa would also star Jugal Hansraj, Nargis Fakhri and Sharib Hashmi. I am also there in R. Balki’s Lust Stories Season 2 which is going to be streamed on Netflix and also an anthology called Ishq Nadaan with Anurag Basu as my director and Kanwaljeet Singh as my co-actor.

How satisfied are you now that you are considered as one of the actors who can be trusted to get into the skin of their roles effortlessly?

I refused to follow any trend, which is why I suffered. Not anymore, now I am happy, satisfied and thankful.

The film is directed by Sooraj Barjatya– a director I had been chasing since his debut film Maine Pyaar Kiya. I would call him a sadhu purush as he does not shout at his artistes at all or loses his temper but is very cool. It was impossible to reach the Barjatyas! Initially I used to try a lot because everyone wanted to work with Rajshri. It was very difficult to meet Sooraj then. But I used to keep coming to Rajshri office.

Who are the filmmakers who are in your wish list as an actor?

Karan Johar, Anurag Kashyap and last but not the least Sanjay Leela Bhansali who had called me for a film but signed on someone else

How was the experience of acting under the direction of a director like Sooraj Barjatya?

In the 90s, I was doing projects which were different from his world but I felt he was an amazing director. He has to offer what most of our audience wants. To now be a part of his film, finally, feels life coming full circle.