Chaya Unnikrishnan (DNA; October 5, 2019)

Richa Chadha’s last release, Section 375, was critically-acclaimed and she won rave reviews for her turn as a lawyer alongside Akshaye Khanna. However, people felt that she did not get much scope to perform as the courtroom drama was dominated by Akshaye. But, Richa is unperturbed. “I think it’s a childish thing to say, as it depends on the story. When I did Gangs Of Wasseypur, nobody said that Manoj Bajpayee’s role was meatier. That’s because people have started expecting me to do a role like Bholi Punjaban (Fukrey) where I have the punch lines. This is kind of a stereotype in the viewers’ minds. I don’t take it seriously. As far as the narrative of the film is concerned, I don’t have a balanced role and that happened after the edit, as there were some things that had to be taken out from my side of the story. And, honestly, he (Akshaye) is a senior actor who has been around for many years. I don’t know what the problem is,” she retorts.

The actress finds it ironic when audiences watch the most ordinary movie where the woman has nothing to do except a song, a couple of scenes, and don’t have a problem with it. “They confuse a real-life persona or a previous role that the actor has done. Every role can’t be the same. In Masaan, a lot of people told me, ‘Aapke toh dialogue nahi the’. I think Masaan and Section 375 have been my most low-key roles,” she shares.

Next, she will be seen in the second season of Inside Edge, in which she essays an actress who owns a cricket team. “Zarina Malik is quite the boss lady and in this season, she will be showing all her shades and true colours. I had fun because playing an actor when you are one, you can add a lot of things to it,” says Richa, who was appreciated for her performance in the first season of the series. She reasons that after seeing her as an actor who does only rural parts, people liked her as a sophisticated ambitious woman. “They like seeing me in a different avatar,” she smiles.

Recently, the trailer of Saand Ki Aankh, in which Taapsee Pannu and Bhumi Pednekar play women in their 60s, sparked off a debate about whether older roles should be played by senior actresses like Neena Gupta and Shabana Azmi. The Badhaai Ho actress even tweeted, “Hamari umar ke role toe kamsekam humse kara lo bhai (sic).”

Incidentally, Richa started off her career playing an older woman in Gangs Of Wasseypur. When asked about her take on it, she said, “Mine was a transition from a younger to older role. And I can’t say anything without watching the film. I don’t understand the market, but filmmakers have a certain compulsion. I empathise with Neena ma’am — what she is saying. At the same time, when she wins an award for Best Actress for Badhaai Ho, when Gajju ji (Gajraj Rao) becomes an overnight star even though he has been in the industry for so long or when Seema Pahwa, whom we have seen in Hum Log, is shooting non-stop and has date issues, I am so happy. All their points are valid,” she says and adds, “I take this opportunity to congratulate Shabana ji who will be doing a web series of Steven Spielberg, Dimple ma’am (Kapadia) who will be seen in Christopher Nolan’s film. They are doing such amazing work at their age, it is seriously cool,” she signs off.