“I’m Not Hungry To Be At The Top Again” – Raveena Tandon In A Candid Interview With Koimoi

Raveena Tandon gets candid in an exclusive interview with Koimoi ahead of her upcoming film Maatr’s release…

What is your role?

My role is that of a middle-class lady who has a small family, a husband and a daughter. The metamorphosis in her life is what the story is all about.

Why did you choose this character?

It’s not about the character, why did I choose this film is what I would like to answer first. Every second day, there are reports of incidents of violence and crime against women in the papers and I feel somewhere we all are becoming numb towards it. The number of such incidents is only going higher with each passing day. Laws have been made but a lot of criminals also get away. Criminals are not afraid of the law anymore because the law is not strict enough or harsh enough. There are incidents where a criminal gets away after raping a girl and comes back to threaten her and rape her again. I am also a mother and hence the character is very close to my heart. It boils my blood to see no action being taken and criminals getting away. We need to take real aggressive steps; stern harsh sentences need to be given.

How can the Indian society’s perspective towards women change?

Somewhere the entire society’s mindset has to change. Until and unless that happens, these kinds of incidents will continue to happen. Why was the victim wearing jeans or why was she alone there at night— these are the shameful comments that you hear from some of the religious leaders and political leaders. Instead of turning around and saying that ‘we are sorry, we couldn’t protect our sisters and daughters and we’ll see to it that something like this never happens’ they blame the victim! This is really sad and needs to change. Right from childhood, we need to teach our children to respect, to protect anyone who is weaker— be it male or female. A majority of the hardened criminals start young. It needs to be nipped in the bud because these children grow up psychologically taking pleasure in other people or animals’ pain. They get a sadistic pleasure in doing this. It is also our responsibility as mothers to teach our children these things.

26 years in Bollywood— how has your journey been?

There have been many ups and downs. But I have no regrets at all. I feel God has been kind enough to me that whenever I have felt like starting work after a break, I have got offers. I have struggled undoubtedly but these 26 years have been a very eventful, learning experience. It hasn’t been a very easy journey, to be honest. A lot of people wanted to hide the truth which I spoke. Why should you hide or be scared of things in life? I never hurt anyone intentionally. If I’ve hurt someone unintentionally, I stand up and say sorry. I am not ashamed to say sorry if I’ve made a mistake. I live with a clean heart and a clear conscience. I’ve not played political games in my career and I’ve not had people thrown out of movies. I am in a very happy space right now and I am grateful to God for everything.

How has Bollywood changed in all these years?

When we came to Bollywood, we were completely raw; I can at least speak for myself. I started with no acting or dancing classes. The day I decided to do films, I was on the shooting floor the very next day. I had no experience whatsoever. Today’s kids are well prepared and organised. It’s great to watch them because there is so much professionalism in the industry today. It’s a great time for Indian cinema.

The younger actresses are opting for more and more women oriented films…

I am glad you brought up this point! I was discussing this with someone yesterday. The growth of these girls today is so fast, it’s by leaps and bounds. For example, the work that I did probably in my 11th or 12th film, these girls are already doing in their second film! We grew with each film, learning how to act, things like camera angle etc but today’s generation evolves so fast!

Do you have a problem with the term ‘comeback’?

No, I don’t have a problem with the term comeback but I can’t keep making a comeback with every film I do! Every time I do a film, they say I am making a comeback. For the last five films which I have done, I’ve been hearing that this is my comeback film. Get a little original, this term has become clichéd!

Which other films are you planning next?

I am doing a film for a friend, Onir. It’s called Shab. I am not the protagonist of the film; I just have a small role in it. It’s not that I am planning to do this or that. If something touches my heart I do it. I love Jazz music and hence did that cameo in Bombay Velvet. I have got many things to do, I have my kids to look after, I have a reality show going on, Sabse Bada Kalakar. I’m not hungry to be at the top again. I don’t want a release to come up every Friday. I’ve been there, done that. If a film touches my heart, then probably I’ll say yes.