Five years after Aladdin Naam Toh Suna Hoga, Nausheen Ali Sardar has returned to television with Barsatein Mausam Pyaar Ka. She says, “The best and the most difficult aspect of being a part of this show is that it doesn’t follow the typical style of daily soap acting; it’s real and understated. I had become so accustomed to the conventional style of television acting that I needed to unlearn what I had done so far. It was initially challenging, but I have adapted now.”

The actress will play protagonist Shivangi Joshi’s mother in Barsatein. She reasons, “Shivangi is young. I am comfortable playing mother to young actors, but not someone my age.”

Like many actors, transitioning from playing a beti to a mother wasn’t easy for Nausheen. She says, “At the peak of my career, I was asked to play a mother in my show, Kkusum. However, at that time, I feared that if I agreed to play a mother, I wouldn’t get back to portraying the heroine again, so I exited the show. At this point in my career, I’m okay playing a mother if it is a strong character.”

On the personal front, Nausheen is single. “Everybody wants love and so do I, but I haven’t met the right person yet. I am a hardcore romantic. I will only marry someone when I am sure about him and certain that I can’t live without him,” she signs off.

Talking about returning to TV after a five-year break, Nausheen says, “The pandemic struck and then when work resumed, budgets crashed drastically. I wasn’t okay with taking a 50 per cent pay cut. I had decided to quit the industry at that point because I couldn’t accept being paid what I was offered 20 years ago. Where is the growth for me? I am clear about two things when I take up a project – good money and a significant role. That’s when I shifted my focus to doing voice-overs for movies, which has kept me busy for the last couple of years. I have to consider several factors, including the money I deserve and the location of the shoot.”