As Kolkata wakes up in the wee hours of dawn to the enchanting baritone of Birendra Krishna Bhadra, people know that the festive season has begun. Tina Datta who rose to fame with Uttaran, listens to Mahishasurmardini not just on Mahalaya but on other days also. She misses Kolkata’s Pujo and talks to CT about her childhood memories of Durga Puja, Pujo shopping, Mumbai’s Pujo and more.

As a child, Tina used to spend Durga Puja with her grandparents, memories of which she really cherishes. “Visiting pandals near my house was a must along with my grandparents. They would make me sit right next to them and teach me the Puja rituals. I just loved to hear the stories from the Puranas they used to narrate. They also gave me 50 rupees as pocket money for five days with which I could buy anything I wanted. So, I used to have ice cream and cold drinks without anyone scolding me (laughs)!”

"Seeing the whole city decked up before Pujo gives goosebumps as it looks beautiful with pandals and decorative lights"

As Tina stays in Mumbai, she doesn’t always have specific plans for Pujo. However, she misses coming to Kolkata for anjali. She says, “I have no such plans this year, other than visitng pandals in Mumbai and going for events. There was a time when I made it a point to fly down to Kolkata on Ashtami for the anjali but now it’s not possible these days because of the festive rush.”

Durga Puja shopping is one of the things that one looks forward to in the entire year. Tina says, “Durga Puja was the time to receive unlimited gifts from parents and relatives. Wearing new shoes and trying them before puja was mandatory. My father specially used to give me Rs 500 to buy makeup because I loved doing makeup since childhood. At that time, at Rs 500 we used to get so many beauty products! Now we buy things throughout the year, but back in those days, waiting for the whole year to buy during pujo was indeed something to look forward to.”

Talking about how much Tina misses Durga Puja in Kolkata, she says, “I miss the art that Kolkata creates during this time of the year. I don’t think one can witness such creativity, and ideation anywhere else in India – it is unparalleled. I also miss the food which is an integral part of Pujo, including chops & cutlets. Mumbai cannot match up to it.”

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"The months leading up to the festival are marked by the sculpting of clay images of Durga and her family at Kumartuli, and it is such a wonderful place to visit"

After making a name for herself on television, Tina Datta is now looking forward to exploring other mediums. The actor tells us, “I really want to experiment and am already in talks for two web projects. I am a workaholic and mujhe ghar par baithna accha nahi lagta.”.

This shift from TV to another medium, however, is far from easy. Datta explains, “It’s very difficult to switch or portray another character when people have already seen you in a sati savitri bahu role for years. For me, too, it’s going to be tough.”

While one would think that the ‘TV actor’ label is a thing of the past, the Hum Rahe Na Rahe Hum actor says the stereotype still lingers and continues to hinder opportunities. “Even today, people [in the industry] think daily soap actors ko nahin lena hai, and I don’t think that’s going away anytime soon,” she says, adding that she herself has faced the brunt of this.

“I did face difficulty in getting opportunities because of the TV actor box [I was put in]. After doing Uttaran for more than five years, people couldn’t see me in another character, even during auditions. It was so difficult to get another show,” adds the 32-year-old.

This is precisely why Datta is excited to experiment with OTT. But, not at the expense of TV. “On the web, every character has its own importance. If there’s a strong character with a great personality, I would love to do it. I want to do both OTT and TV together. Right now, if the shoot is well-planned, it’s not difficult to do that. Sometimes, the channel may not want you to be a part of any other project. It can get taxing, but I will try my best,” she says.

Shifting to another medium also means being accommodative to a diverse range of content. What is her take on the so-called “bold scenes” often seen in OTT projects? “One of the projects [I am in talks for] has bold scenes. I don’t want to go overboard with it, I have to know if it’s required or not. As long as it’s shot and portrayed well, it’s fine. The character or script should demand that scene, zabardasti vulgar nahin lagna chahiye,” Datta wraps up.

Tina Datta will be celebrating Diwali with her furry companion Bruno this year. While one might think she’d feel lonely being away from Kolkata and not celebrating with family, she begs to differ.

“Bruno is my baby. I wouldn’t want to leave him behind and fly to Kolkata to spend time with my family. Pets cannot express, but they also want to be around on special days. They come into our lives for a limited time span of 10-12 years. So, the time we spend with them is precious. So, I wouldn’t want to miss out on that. I have no regrets,” says the 31-year-old.

As someone staying alone in Mumbai, wouldn’t she feel lonely on Diwali? “While work commitments keep me busy these days, I have been spending time decorating my house. That helps beat loneliness,” she tells us.

Sharing how she celebrated the festival of lights as a kid, Datta says, “When I was in Kolkata, we would get a lot of crackers. We were four brothers and sisters, but we stopped bursting them later, as I felt strongly about the environment.”

She adds, “Bruno is scared of the loud sounds due to fireworks. So, I sit with him,” she smiles.

Out of the Bigg Boss 16 house and enjoying her return to ‘normal’ life, Tina Datta, who was linked with actor and housemate Shalin Bhanot, says she is done with finding love for a while now. “Mujhe maaf karo yaar, abhi mujhe koi nahi chahiye life mein (laughs). I just want to work now. I want to get married and have kids, but I have gone through so much trauma on Bigg Boss that I want to wait to find love. There has to be someone out there who will shower me with all the respect and love that I deserve,” she tells us.

So, does she regret being linked to Shalin on the show? “I absolutely repent being linked to Shalin in Bigg Boss. Had I not met him or been friends with him on the show, my journey would have been so different and nice. Shalin raised a finger at my character; he was so aggressive that he tried to hit me once, but when I tried to bring out his real image to the public, it backfired on me. He is probably a better actor than human being. I always thought that no one could put up an act on a reality show like Bigg Boss for so long, but Shalin has proved me wrong. He has acted for so many months. Hats off to him!”

Telling us about her stay inside the house, she adds, “It was a rocky ride. I never thought that I could be a part of a show like Bigg Boss, and so I was scared and skeptical when I said yes.”

Tina adds, “The kind of situations I faced inside the house, I wasn’t even sure if I would be able to keep up or survive for so long. But eventually, I used to tell myself that I am a survivor. I survived the loss of my baby (her pet) when I was inside the house, I survived two broken ankles, all the weekend ke vaars, and a broken tooth. It is unbelievable!”

Towards the end, Tina was fired by Farah Khan, who hosted the show on a weekend, for her behaviour towards Shalin. “When I came out, I realized I was trending online, and it was amazing. But facing backlash inside the house didn’t allow me to play the game properly. When I became friends with Priyanka Choudhary, we were told by Farah ma’am that we are mean and the most hated girls on the show. I was in a state of trauma inside the Bigg Boss house,” she shares.

Tina Datta became a household name when she made her appearance in the daily soap, Uttaran. While she began her acting career as a child artiste, it was in 2009 that she finally managed to make her mark. After playing diverse roles throughout her career, the actor will now showcase her real self on Bigg Boss 16. As she mentally prepares herself to live away from family with strangers for 90 days, Dutta talks about her prep, her hope of finding love, and choosing her battles wisely.

Edited excerpts from the interview.

No one can fake through their journey inside the house. Even if you pretend to be someone else for a month, after that, you cannot hide the real you because cameras are rolling 24x7. I’m not going inside the house with the notion that I’ll win by being Sati Savitri. Bigg Boss is a show that [showcases] your personality, and I want to show it to my audience and fans. They already love me for the person I am.

An actor’s life is an open book. There is nothing about me that the audience doesn’t already know. Everything has already come out in the media. I don’t fear that if I do this show, controversial things about my life will be revealed, because there is nothing controversial. However, I’ve had a lot of ups and downs in my life. That could be motivating for people from small towns who are struggling to be actors.

There isn’t one definite way to win the show. Sidharth Shukla didn’t do much in the kitchen, but still won the season. It’s the graph [of your journey in the house] and whether the audience likes your personality [that determines your run]. This is a mind game that depends on how you are projecting yourself.

I am open-minded about it. Often, the audiences feel that [the contestants] are faking their love on the show. But eventually, after they get out of the house, they are still together. It proves that they were never faking it. When you are with someone 24x7, everything happens in fast forward mode. What a person learns about another in a month [in real life], you understand that in a week in the house.

If they find me a nice guy in the house, why not? I don’t know who [else] is participating, but definitely send in a guy [laughs]. Since I am not dating anyone, I doubt I can get married in the house.

That depends on the situation. If the situation calls for it, I will immediately react to it. That said, I also believe some battles don’t need to be fought. When there is a need, I put my foot down. I hope to be the same on the show.

I will take all my comfortable outfits that I normally wear at home. Not everything is going to be designer wear. I am also taking photo frames of my family and fur babies.

I would rather have that unfold on the show. I don’t want to show all my cards right here.

After Tina Datta posted a photo wearing just a high-waist bikini bottom with her back to the camera, her fans reacted with gusto. While most were encouraging, some trolled her badly for her attire. The Uttaran star often posts glamorous photos in a variety of looks as she feels, “Just because we play a certain character on screen doesn’t mean that that’s how we are in real life. I want my photos to have variety. I have always loved to experiment and love carrying off a sari as much as I love wearing a bikini.”

The trolling got so heavy that she had to disable her comments. “Some amazing people loved the pictures but, of course, there are some people who love to write dirty comments as they have nothing better to do in life. One has to give back to them so that they learn their lesson. There are people who have a lot of negativity and while trolling, in the long run, doesn’t affect me but in that moment to read nasty things about yourself is disheartening.”

She took some trolls to task for their comments as she doesn’t want to “give a chance to such people to write stuff or spread negativity” on her social media handle. She adds, “I am sure these people would not dare to speak or say stuff they do online, in real life. The internet gives them a chance to say what they want without repercussions. I didn’t want them to get away with it and pointed out to a few and later disabled comments. I don’t want to be bogged down by what others think, for sure. We are living in such difficult times and it is important to stay positive. I want to live each day as it comes and do what makes me happy.”

Datta is raring to go back to work and shares that work has been on her mind. “I am a workaholic. I just can’t sit at home and do nothing. Times are such that nothing comes before health. I am sure with the unlock now, I will be working very soon.”