Actress Neena Gupta seems to have birthed twice for the world. First, as a passionate novice trying to find her voice in Indian cinema of the ’80s, fresh out of her college days at NSD. Second, when she observed a career resurgence in 2018 with the blockbuster Badhai Ho. The movie turned the tables for the actress. She started getting meatier and pivotal roles, from playing the diffident and discern Manju Devi in web series Panchayat to an uber glamourous protective mother in Masaba Masaba, and then, dabbling in light-hearted comic roles with Uunchai and Goodbye, she is on a roll!
Now, the versatile actress has appeared in a genre we have rarely seen her in — a crime thriller, Vadh — centred around a gruesome murder. The plot shows a distressed couple whose life is riddled with debt, poverty and finally the execution of a grisly crime. The harrowing condition of the lead pair is brought to life by the extremely talented veteran actors Neena and Sanjay Mishra. Their realistic performance reels the viewers in pain, much like the characters. The edgy narrative brings more than what meets the eye with a trepid interplay of light and dark shades in humans, right and wrong in actions and looking above absolute truth and lies. “I liked the plot — a basic story of a simple couple trying to meet their ends, turns into a thriller,” opens the actress as we dialled her to know about the film. “It is the first time that I am working with Sanjay. I have been a great admirer of his work. If you have a good actor, then the chemistry naturally develops. That’s another reason why I got interested in the project. Since the first day, it was like we knew each other from ages,” she tells us about her rapport on the set.
The turning point
Vadh cements Neena as one of the most deserving actors of our time — one who can be trusted with any platform, genre and role under her belt. With the kind of appreciation and visibility she’s getting lately, we asked her the reason behind her sudden resurrection as an actor after four decades. “If Badhaai Ho wasn’t a hit, I would still be playing some smaller roles. That movie changed everything for me. I suddenly became a good actor, I became lovely (laughs),” says the actress. Badhai Ho became a hit with Neena’s unconventional performance where she essayed a middle aged pregnant woman that won her both the audience’s love and critics’ word. However, before Badhai Ho, the actress did over 60 roles in TV and films such as Mandi, Gandhi, Suraj Ka Saatva Ghoda and many more. But the acknowledgement was missing given a lot of films didn’t meet audience expectations or many times, landed her into inconsequential parts. She recalls that time saying, “People have not seen me in most of the projects. That mounts as a main concern because if they haven’t noticed your work, then whatever you do... woh aise hi pada rahega… Nobody will know about it. Now people are seeing me doing meatier roles.” Now, the National Film Awardee is tasting success with gratitude. “It (success) has come late, but it has come, which is great. What if it hadn’t happened, so yes, I am very grateful,” she shares. We asked her if she could go back in time to change anything, what would she want, and she quips, “I’d want Badhai Ho to happen 30-40 years back (laughs)!”
Her own hero
Neena has earned her fair share of fans who admire her for her lively persona, confidence and nonchalant demeanor. She often shares advice about life on her Instagram that shows us an unfiltered version of her. For her, social media gives her agency over her own narrative. “Earlier, I did not have a platform to speak about things. Secondly, when you’re successful, people listen to you. And when you’re successful, you have the courage to talk about things. Also, the media has created my image as per what suited them and sold their product. But now, I have a platform (social media), where I can talk about what I really feel. That way, nobody can change my version or put words into my mouth,” she tells us.
Neena’s words of wisdom are drawn from her own life learnings. From career, feelings, festivals to relationship, marriage and more, she speaks her heart out with utmost honesty and simplicity on social media. Telling us about her biggest life learning, she avers, “It is very important to have self-esteem. A lot of women especially, feel low about themselves.” Having faced numerous ups and downs in her career and personal life, we asked her what’s her coping mechanism. “A good thing about me is I talk it out, I do not keep things bottled inside. I have friends, I have Masaba to share things with,”she responds. Further, when asked to bust a myth about the film industry, she quips, “There are many (laughs!) I dont know where to start from… Chahe aap kitne bhi bade star ban jao, khaana toh aap dal chawal hi khaate ho. Stars don’t eat gold or coins, they eat plain food!”
Vadh is currently running in theatres.
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