If you Google ‘Indian Actor Human Rights’, Sheena Chohan comes up number one out of 294 million searches! And that is the reason why the UN’s Human Rights High Commissioner’s office chose Sheena to help celebrate the 75th anniversary of the UN’s Universal Declaration on Human Rights. Sheena Chohan, who has acted in The Fame Game and The City of Dreams, is South Asia Ambassador for United for Human Rights. She has helped spread awareness of basic rights and equality to over 160 million people so far. We spoke to the actor/activist about her work as a human right activist, film projects, dreams and more.
Why did you choose acting and then human rights activism?
I chose acting because I love creating characters. I love the research that goes into understanding them and I enjoy working with a director to bring their vision to life. Acting takes a certain kind of professionalism — you have to be a totally blank page for the director and should have complete conviction about the character, and there's nothing I love more than that. In terms of my work in human rights — it’s quite linked to acting. An actor has to understand the character, whoever they are and whatever they’ve done, and when you understand people, you like them more and you realise that they deserve to be well treated. I work hard to spread awareness of basic rights and equality because human rights bring decency to society. It’s so important to end discrimination, make sure that we all have the right to education, and all of the rights in the United Nations Universal Declaration of Human Rights. So, I encourage people to read it here: www.humanrights.com.
Did you face sexism in your career?
No, I know my rights, so I don't accept discrimination. The world has changed so much in the last decade. There’s a lot more awareness about how we need to treat others with respect, but also it’s important to recognise that while there are reports about abuse, there are so many other positive, inspiring cases. I personally say no to any project that is too sexually oriented or violent, because those types of films or series don’t uplift the culture. By not involving in those types of films or shows, I’m also not around people who are too obsessed with those aspects of life.
How did you choose projects through your career?
I have a very clear goal in life, which is to help make the world a better place through the arts, which has so much power, both for good and bad. I use all of my efforts to do things, which are going to uplift, enliven or inspire. Because I understand my purpose in life, it makes it very clear to me which projects to say no to — for instance, anything that glamorises drugs or glorifies violence. However, when it comes to what to say yes to — that's more of a matter of the heart. If I feel that the character is interesting to me and that there’s layers that I can research and bring something interesting to the director, and if the story captures my attention and I like the team behind it, then I’ll do it.
You have worked with some of the leading Bollywood actors. Who do you admire the most?
I admire all artistes because of the way art connects to people. A song, a movie, a piece of poetry — they all have the power to either simply make us smile or change our entire direction in life. The leading artists have a deep and lasting impact on society; they have been consistent in being part of stories that the audience feel connected to and that shape conversations and attitudes across our country. To say which artiste I admire the most is very hard, because each one has done so much for our country. Working with Kajol recently was such a huge pleasure because I have a great admiration for her. In fact, I mentioned her in my TED Talk about the power of art, because one interesting fact is that after the success of DDLJ, arranged marriages fell by 10 per cent in the next few years, and I don't think that was a co-incidence because that film was seen repeatedly by a billion people and it told the story of a love marriage.
Which character among the many you've played are you proudest of and Why?
I really did a lot of work on Ant Story, the film I was nominated for as Best Actress at the Dubai and Shanghai Festivals and was bought by Netflix. The director, Mostofa Sarwar Farooki, and I worked for months to really get inside of my character, Reema’s head — an iconic actress and a deeply troubled woman. I did a lot of research, but Mostafa Sir is a brilliant writer and director and he often re-writes again and again, even while on the set. So, I had to use all of the preparatory work in creating the character in the very moment he changed a story line! It was so much fun and I was really relieved to have done all that prep and I hope the mix between the deep research I did and the spontaneity that the director threw me into, created a character that people will remember.
Any new project in the pipeline?
The Trial comes out this week (July 14). I’ve played the lead opposite Subodh Bhave in the Hindi biopic about Sant Tukaram, directed by Aditya Om, which comes out later this year. Also, I shot a Hollywood film called Nomad, which equaled a Guinness Book Record for the film shot in the most countries on Earth (it was filmed on all 7 continents), and I'm really looking forward to that.
What’s one thing you want to do you have not done yet?
Make a film with Tom Cruise!