Showing posts with label Agle Janam Mohe Bitiya Hi Kijo. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Agle Janam Mohe Bitiya Hi Kijo. Show all posts
When I was a child artiste, I struggled to fit in at school-Fatima Sana Shaikh
3:45 PM
In a conversation with Bombay Times, the actress recalls her stint as a child artiste and how she later made a foray into TV and films
Onkar Kulkarni (BOMBAY TIMES; December 6, 2021)
Fatima Sana Shaikh, who was a leading child artiste, shared screen space with actors like Kamal Haasan (Chachi 420), Shah Rukh Khan and Juhi Chawla (One 2 Ka 4), among others. While she was appreciated for her work, in hindsight, the actress feels that her personal life suffered during that phase as she always struggled to make friends and fit in among her peers. That was one of the reasons she even bid adieu to movies.
She shares, “One of the reasons I quit acting as a child artiste was because I missed being around kids my age. I didn’t have a core set of friends in school. I was always trying to fit in. But because I was not attending school (due to film commitments), I could not connect with my classmates. Likewise, since there were adults around on a film set, they couldn’t relate to me and treated me like a bachcha.”
Fatima says, “I wasn’t spending enough time with my peers in my class, I wasn’t getting any acceptance from them. Kids can be a little cruel sometimes. They would think, ‘Achcha baahar badi star banti hai, hum dikhate hai isko’. You know many children get bullied in school, right? On one hand, I was managing shoots, which would go on for 16 hours non-stop, and on the other, I was managing school and exams. It wasn’t easy, so I decided to quit films.”
It was only when she grew up that she decided to pursue acting as her career. Her new innings, which she began by taking up television shows like (Ladies Special and Agle Janam Mohe Bitiya Hi Kijo), left her with a bitter taste. “I used to shoot for 13-14 hours at a stretch. Plus, the script would come to you minutes before the take,” she says, adding, “As an artiste, I didn’t enjoy this process at all. Some people enjoy this madness, I don’t. I like to be a little prepared. So, it was getting uncomfortable for me. I enjoy doing films because you get to play varied characters for a short span of time and then move on. Playing the same character for 15 hours every day, and that too, in a show which can run for as long as five years, was not my cup of tea.”
Fatima, who ventured into movies once again with Dangal, went on to be a part of films like Thugs Of Hindostan, Ludo and Suraj Pe Mangal Bhari. The actress who is busy shooting for her upcoming ventures, recently revisited a chapter of her life.
She shares, “During the lockdown, I got an opportunity to visit my old house in Andheri East, where I spent my childhood. It’s a one-room kitchen apartment where four of us — my parents, my brother and I — used to stay. I was surprised and wondered how we all fit in there, as sometimes we would have around 8-10 relatives from Jammu and Kashmir staying with us. We have sold the house now, and the new owner was very sweet to give us a tour of the house. They still have our old furniture there.”
For years, women had come to accept abuse as normal-Fatima Sana Shaikh
9:17 AM
Fatima Sana Shaikh commends #MeToo, asserts she won’t judge those who share their horror stories and expects not to be judged for not sharing hers; has bounced back from last debacle with two new films
Ankita Chaurasia (MUMBAI MIRROR; March 13, 2019)
Dangal was a blockbuster, Thugs of Hindostan was a disaster of epic proportions and Fatima Sana Shaikh admits she was so disheartened after the latter that she didn’t come out of the room for days and wanted to run away some place else. “We were all disturbed, we had worked on the film for a-year-and-a-half,” she sighs. Any regrets? “Why would I not do a film like Thugs?” she shoots back. “I still don’t consider it a setback to my career.”
The girl who bagged a Commonwealth gold in reel life as wrestler Geeta Phogat in her first film, started her journey as a child artiste. Her parents were avid film buffs and since they lived next door to Kamal Amrohi Studio, her mother who was keen on her children being a part of showbiz, would often land up at shoots and ask around for roles for them. That’s how Fatima landed her first film, Chachi 420, Kamal Haasan’s Indianised Mrs Doubtfire, in which he played his daughter. The actress surprises you by admitting that she didn’t enjoy working as a child. “You are surrounded by adults all the time and the work hours are long,” she flashbacks with a frown.
Four years later in 2001, she appeared in the Shah Rukh Khan and Juhi Chawla-starrer, One 2 Ka 4. Tahaan (2008), Bittoo Boss (2012) and Akaash Vani (2009) followed and were quickly forgotten. Since acting was the only thing she knows and her family’s financial condition was precarious, she turned to TV in 2009 to pay the bills, doing shows like Ladies Special and Agle Janam Mohe Bitiya Hi Kijo. “But unless you are the lead, you don’t get much izzat on TV. I’m glad that phase of my life is over,” she says with relief, admitting that after Dangal when she did not work for a while, she would get hyper. “I don’t like sitting at home, there’s this nagging fear of things not working out because I have struggled for long,” she admits.
She hints at incidents of sexual harassment, but won’t divulge details, only saying that she commends the #MeToo movement for providing a voice to victims. “I don’t want to expose that side of my life… I’m dealing with it, speaking to people I’m close to. Just like I won’t judge those who want to share their horror stories, I expect not to be judged for not sharing mine,” she says softly, adding emotionally, “Now sexual predators are scared of being shamed in public and shunned by the industry. For so many years we had normalised assault to such an extent that women had come to accept abuse as something that was normal.”
Meanwhile, she’s been trolled time and again and acknowledges that the first time it happened over a beach photoshoot she cried but now doesn’t take such people seriously. “I read all the comments, even the negative ones, and am amazed that people are so invested in me. If I can aggravate them, what can be better than that?” she chuckles.
The 27-year-old actress has already bounced back from the Thugs debacle with two interesting projects. There’s Anurag Basu’s next with Rajkummar Rao, a crime drama. “I’ve wanted to work with Anurag for the longest time and I’m happy to do whatever he wants me to do,” she beams. Unlike her first two films, this one needed no prep and Fatima just had to be herself. “We would meet on set, discuss the character, offer inputs and execute the scene. We shot in Bhopal and I started my days with Dada (Anurag) taking me to this chaiwala for Bhopal ki special chai. I danced on the set and even gatecrashed a baraat,” she rattles off.
The other film is a horror-comedy, Pavan Kriplani’s Bhoot Police, and features another Khan, Saif Ali Khan. “Having worked with Aamir and Saif, Shah Rukh and Salman are now on my wishlist,” Fatima laughs. Remind her that she’s worked with SRK as a child artiste and she quips, “Yes, but I want to work with him as a grown-up too.”
While on co-stars, what’s the equation with her mentor Aamir? “I look up to him and I am fond of him. As a struggling actress, I could only hope to work with someone of his stature. Now, having watched him closely, I understand why he is so good at his work. He comes to the set on time, reads the script 24x7 and keeps rehearsing his lines. It’s their passion that sets actors like Aamir, (Amitabh) Bachchan sir and Raj (Rajkummar Rao) apart. I can only hope that their dedication rubs off on me,” she says.
She may be on her fourth film but Fatima is ambitious about her directors. “Films are a director’s medium and I want to work with Sanjay Leela Bhansali, Rajkumar Hirani,” she reveals. Also, on her wishlist are Ranbir Kapoor, Ranveer Singh, Varun Dhawan and an out-and-out romance film. “I’m lucky that I can choose projects, outsiders don’t have that option. I got Dangal after auditions. Honestly, I would have done any film at that point. The process of getting here has been slow but a fruitful one.” she says.
And is a real-life romance on the cards? Pat comes the answer, “I’m not seeing anyone, I’m comfortable being alone. I watch movies, go to restaurants on my own and don’t miss having someone around because my work is my love. And even when I’m not working, I don’t go out to meet people,” she signs off.
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