Ridhi Dogra says she doesn’t want to do roles that objectify her: ‘I can’t wear short skirts and dance’

The 40-year-old says that she always played the protagonist on TV. “I have actually been badly pampered by television because I have only played the leading lady there. I will only enhance my circle of work. I can’t stick to wanting to do only lead roles, because while that is amazing and you get all the attention, the reason I am picky is because I want to do different roles,” she shares.

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Ridhi further adds, “I don’t want to be typecast, it’s very easily done in this profession because it’s a visual medium. Before anybody can typecast me into anything, I just keep breaking the moulds. And not that there are billions of opportunities coming to you when you walk a certain path. I will be watchful of what I do and in that I will make some good and some not so good decisions. There’s no other way, I don’t have the privilege or luxury of having someone tell me what to do. I don’t have a template of how this industry functions.”

Ask her if there’s a desire to play the leading lady in a mainstream Hindi film and she replies, “Honestly, not if there is nothing impactful. I really don’t want to dance around in short skirts and I don’t want my assets popping out of my clothes. There’s no way I ever want to be objectified. If there is a purpose and impact of my character, then even looking like a candy floss is fine. I can’t take up anything just for the sake of it,” adding, “For me, that’s not challenging. I have done such beautiful characters, I have been challenged in my acting journey. Once you taste that, you can’t go into a character in a story which says, ‘Oh, come and save me’. Forget anything else, I just can’t do it.”

Ask her about co-star Vikrant Massey’s career break announcement, she talks about facing saturation. “I have done television, which is round the clock every day. Ofcourse it happens, we are in a mental profession. As an actor, it takes a toll on you, especially when you are playing a difficult part. It’s not like we are the first actors to say this. It’s a thing of this profession, that’s the price we pay.”

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The actor continues, “Why is an actor valuable? Because they are bringing something to the parts you want them to play. They are not just standing there saying their lines. Of course you get spent, exhausted, you feel like you need a break or time out.”

There was a special screening of their film The Sabarmati Report held at the parliament, attended by Prime Minister Narendra Modi and the entire cabinet. Calling it an “unreal and overwhelming” experience, she reflects, “It was very emotional as well. When the film started playing in the auditorium, I was crying. I remember Vikrant and Raashi kept asking me if I was okay. The national flag came on, and that feeling of being in the parliament, standing with PM Modi and the entire cabinet, was very emotional.”

“I don’t look at it as a career milestone, it was more of a life milestone. It’s only one life and how many beautiful experiences can one gather? I feel very blessed to be doing what I do. It’s not like a job at all, it’s a gift, a huge gift that you probably get if you are in a creative field. Apart from that, aisa sabke saath thodi hota hai (this doesn’t happen with everyone). It was really memorable. Giving absolute credit to our Prime Minister and government for their encouragement,” Ridhi ends.