Rachana Dubey (BOMBAY TIMES; March 28, 2020)

Shabana Azmi recently spoke to BT about life post the near-fatal accident in January this year, how the ecosystem of casting character actors has changed, and life in times of the coronavirus pandemic. Read on…

You returned from a trip to Budapest and went in for self-imposed quarantine. How are you biding time at home while in self-isolation?
I returned on March 15 with my close friend Parna Patkar and my nurse Pravina who were with me in Budapest. Hungary was not included in the risky countries then, so I wasn’t worried. It was really on Parna’s and Zoya’s (Akhtar) insistence that I have self-isolated myself till March 30.

What arrangements have you made at home for quarantining yourself, given that your husband Javed Akhtar is also home these days?
Our office staff is working from their homes. Only a skeletal domestic staff is operating from our house. We have been counselling whoever we can to maintain a safe distance and wash their hands with soap and water frequently. With healthcare conditions in our country severely lacking, we simply do not have the wherewithal to deal with the pandemic if it hits in full force. There are not enough ventilators, ICUs and hospital beds, so we have to try and flatten the curve. Social distancing and going by the government advisories must become the norm. I participated in a board meeting (via phone) of the NGO I work with based in Ahmedabad for two hours.

I am trying to Marie Condo the house starting with my books, although it’s really hard to part with them! But I really want to declutter and get rid of stuff I haven’t used for six months, whether it’s clothes bags or shoes. I don’t see the point of having a favourite sari or a favourite outfit if I know that I won’t repeat it. I’m glad Kate Middleton has been repeating her outfits and talking about sustainable fashion. Celebrities must set an example and repeat their clothes. Javed and I have also been reading a lot, watching movies and resting. I’ve recovered well but have to still get my strength back.

Could you tell us how long it took you to recover from the accident that you met with on the weekend after Javed Saab’s birthday and what had really happened?
It was a pure accident. I was sleeping at the back of my car because we had stayed up till early morning celebrating Javed’s birthday. Javed was in another car ahead of me with his cousin Dr Sumbul Warsi and her husband Nawab. We were on our way to Sukoon, our house in Khandala when a truck rammed into my car.

Your accident had clearly shaken up the entire family. Javed Saab had barely gone home during those days…
Mercifully, I passed out and I remember nothing. When I came to my senses, I was in the ICU at Kokilaben Hospital, Mumbai. The doctors and hospital staff were exemplary. In fact, I remember very little of the entire period I was in the ICU. Every now and then I would hear snatches of a conversation where someone would say, ‘It’s a miracle she survived.’ My phone was taken away. It was much later that I saw the outpouring of concern and prayers from all quarters. It was overwhelming. I resumed shooting 40 days after the accident. It’s a miracle I didn’t break any bones or require surgery. But my nerves have taken a beating. I still have a lot of pain in my neck, arms and palms due to the accident.

Before the industry halted work, you had resumed shooting and travelling. How was the experience on the set of Halo in Budapest?
I’ve been shooting there off and on since October and it’s been great. I’m contracted not to say more than that at this stage about the project.

As an actor, you’ve always been active from the time you started off ...
Neena Gupta had recently brought up the issue of ageism a few months ago. She had even urged filmmakers through social media to get work.

Do you think women (of your generation), even today, do not have enough age-appropriate roles written for them?
It’s getting better. This is a very good time for actors because all kinds of work are coming our way. I’m doing drama, comedy, villainous roles in equal measure, and enjoying it. The advent of the casting director has changed the ecosystem, particularly for character actors. Earlier you had stock characters...Jeevan, Kanhaiyalal, Shivraj, etc. Today, the actors are being ferreted out from theatre and small towns. They bring a great degree of authenticity because acting is about reacting. This inspires the lead actors to push the envelope. Actors are no longer doing 12 films at one time, so they get the time to learn a skill, change body type, etc. Today, if you are shown playing the guitar, you can’t fake it. You have to learn the chords.

From the time you became an actor, you’ve largely led the films that you’ve worked in. Why do you think the industry has taken so long to accept women in powerful places — as directors, central characters in films, producers, cinematographers and so on?
In a patriarchal society like ours, women have to fight hard for a seat at the table. Boys are privileged over girls from birth. Equal opportunity and access for both girls and boys must become the norm.

In an earlier a discussion with BT, directors like Ashwiny Iyer Tiwari, Nandita Das and Tanuja Chandra had pointed out that even today, despite a large number of women in different departments of cinema, they are expected to take the shorter end of the stick. Your views?
We need many more directors, producers and writers who have a female gaze. A woman director is not obliged to make a feminist film. She can make what she wants, a thriller, an action film, a comedy, or whatever, but hopefully, she will be informed by a gaze that is female.

You often say that Javed saab does not have the bone of romance in his body, but both of you have always stood by each other like a rock. Love and companionship of that sort are becoming rare in relationships today. What do you think has kept you both together for so many years?
Love, friendship and a similar worldview. We belong to identical backgrounds...we could have had an arranged marriage given our commonalities!


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MEDICS VISIT JAVED AKHTAR-SHABANA AZMI’S BUILDING

Yesterday morning, a team of medics was seen at Shabana Azmi and Javed Akhtar’s building. According to a resident from the neighbourhood, the team wore protective gear and masks on and carried their kits and other equipment to the top floor of the building, where the couple stays.

The actress, who was in Budapest for the shoot of her international film, Halo, had returned to India around March 15 and has been in a self-imposed quarantine for a fortnight. She had met with a serious car accident on the Mumbai-Pune Expressway in January. When we reached out to her, she said, “I had to take certain tests in the hospital, as a follow-up to the accident. Fortunately, we were able to do all the tests at home. I am fine.”