She debuted in 1997 in the Prosenjit Chatterjee-Rituparna Sengupta starrer Mayar Badhon and won over the audience with her graceful looks. There has been no looking back for the gorgeous Srabanti Chatterjee after her first major film Champion (2003) opposite popular actor Jeet. Back-to-back hits including Dujone, Wanted, Amanush and Josh firmly established the actor as one of the leading ladies of mainstream cinema in Tollywood.
Srabanti is among a handful of actors who have already worked with some of the most reputed filmmakers in the industry, including Aparna Sen, Srijit Mukherji, Aniruddha Roy Chowdhury, Raj Chakraborty and Birsa Dasgupta. The actor with a dazzling smile also garnered appreciation for her class acts in Aparna Sen’s Goynar Baksho and in Aniruddha Roy Chowdhury’s Buno Haansh.
Last year, she was seen in Srijit Mukherji’s superhit Uma alongside Jisshu Sengupta, and in Abhimanyu Mukherjee’s Piya Re, opposite actor Soham Chakraborty. Her poignant performance in Uma was praised both by critics and the audience. Her first Bangladeshi film Jodi Ekdin is also doing well across the border. This year, the actor — who is now busy shooting for Tridib Raman’s Uraan, where she’s paired opposite Saheb Bhattercherjee — will be seen in Rajorshi Dey’s Birpurush, Haranath Chakraborty’s Bhootchakra Private Limited, Abhimanyu Mukherjee’s Teko and the family drama, Googly.
The film Googly, which releases today, is about two people with speech impediments and their life struggles, featuring Soham alongside Srabanti. We caught up with the star, in the middle of her hectic schedule, to chat about her career moves and what keeps her going. Excerpts:
Your act in Uma has been praised widely. This year will begin with Abhimanyu Mukherjee’s Googly, where you play a girl with a speech impediment. How was the experience?
Honestly, this is my first ever film where I stammer. All through my career, I have received good feedback from the audience, who are my biggest critics. Hence they have a lot of expectations from me, and I always try not to disappoint them as an actor. In Googly, too, I have put in a lot of effort. But believe me, there was no formal speech training. All I ensured was to sound credible. But the movie is not about stammering alone, it’s a beautiful, emotional drama of two struggling people, who strive for each other’s well-being.
Have you become more conscious about choosing meaningful cinema?
Yes, since as a viewer, I too want to watch a movie that touches my heart. I think mindless fights in a movie no longer engage audiences. Whether it’s a horror, comedy or romance, a film must have an interesting storyline to appeal to the audience. But I don’t believe in dividing films into different genres. There is actually no such thing called parallel or mainstream cinema. I equally enjoy dancing and singing in films besides acting in serious roles, and I’ve been lucky to get offers to act in varied roles.
How much have you grown as an actor? Which filmmakers do you hope to work with?
I think the audience is a better judge of how much I h ave matured as an actor. I’d love to work with all the filmmakers , and I don’t want to take any one name as others might get hurt (laughs).
You will be seen opposite Ritwik Chakraborty in Abhimanyu Mukherjee’s film, Teko. Tell us, how is Ritwik as an actor?
I’d done an ad film with Ritwik before. This is my first film with him, and he is a fabulous actor. He is spontaneous and natural, and despite everything else, he is down-to-earth and shows no tantrums — that’s the best thing about him. As an actor, he makes you feel so relaxed that you are bound to give your best shot.
sharmishtha.g @newindian express.com
@sharmidas