Exclusive | Mita Vashisht on fighting single woman stereotype: ‘Women thought I’m going to run away with their husbands’

To make the gaze more stinging, is the misconception of what it means to be a female artiste in the film industry, often looked down upon as a place where actresses are “just dumb.”

“Single women who don’t have a husband or children, are seen as an aberration. When I first moved into my society, where I have now lived for 16 years, my first few years were having to deal with the idea that… Most women thought I am going to run away with their husbands.

“Every time I came back from a shoot, loaded with my bags, trudging my way to the lift, they would say, ‘Ooh having fun?’. One day I had to tell them, ‘No, I am working. I have to pay my bills, I don’t have a husband who is going to do it for me,'” the actor said.

Vasisht said she has battled judgements not just from strangers but also from family members. Recalling a conversation with a relative of hers, the actor said when she offered her insights on a topic, she was told upfront by a man that he is surprised she knows so much, as he always thought she was “just a dumb actress.”

“You are seen with a certain gaze because you are a woman and single. It is not just the industry. I remember having a conversation with some relatives of mine, who I didn’t know very well. I expressed some points regarding (the topic), they were fascinated because they had not heard that aspect of it.

“But at the end of it, this gentleman tells me, ‘I am really impressed by you today, I thought you were just a dumb actress.’ I was like, really? In the last so many years that I have been meeting you people, you have invited me home for lunch, but inside you the perception is that ‘She is just one of those dumb actresses?'”

A graduate from the National School of Drama (NSD), Mita Vasisht made her big screen debut in 1989 with Yash Chopra’s Chandni in 1989 and eventually found her voice with filmmakers like Mani Kaul, Govind Nihalani and Kumar Shahani. She is currently awaiting the release of ZEE5’s upcoming series Jaanbaaz Hindustan Ke.

On set, Vasisht said she has battled the discrimination of being an “art cinema” actor, especially on projects which were much more commercial. Today, she is glad things are changing. “I came from the art cinema background, so when I did films which were way more mainstream, there was an attitude that, ‘You are an art cinema actress, so you don’t deserve all the perks that a commercial film actress will get.’ I fought it, I stood my ground. I would just refuse those things.

“If you are a single woman, who is not in the conventional set of having a husband, children, you are fighting the discrimination all the time. I have to fight it with the driver that I have, who I pay a salary to but who thinks he can backchat at me in a certain way. I have to tell him, ‘If I was a man, would you dare say this to me?'”

Jaanbaaz Hindustan Ke, which is helmed by Srijit Mukherji, also stars Regina Cassandra, Barun Sobti and Sumit Vyas. It will be released in Hindi, Tamil and Telugu on ZEE5 on January 26.