Tillotama Shome says she wouldn’t get entry at award shows despite being nominated: ‘I used to feel invisible’

Tillotama Shome got a great start in her acting career as she debuted with Mira Nair’s 2001 film Monsoon Wedding. The film was a hit at film festivals and also grabbed a Golden Globe award nomination. Like Monsoon Wedding, Tillotama’s most films have been independent productions which were not released in theatres. This affected the popularity of the actress as many didn’t recognise her for the longest time in her career. However, with the rise of OTT actors like Tillotama have gotten a new lease of life.

In a recent interview with Radio Nasha, the actress opened up about the experience of not getting the access to award shows even after getting a nomination as the staff at the entry gate didn’t recognize her. She said, “Earlier, when I used to go to award shows, I wouldn’t get an entry even when I was nominated. I had to tell them that I am an actor and I have received a nomination. The organisers had to come from inside to allow my entry because I was not recognised by the people at the entry gate. After entering the show, I used to question myself, “Why have I come here?’ I didn’t know anybody, I didn’t have any friends who would talk to me or ask me about my work or my health. I used to feel invisible. I used to have a sense of discomfort and felt like not going to award functions. I decided that I will go when they call me with respect.”

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This experience, however, didn’t make Tillotama bitter as she said, “My perspective has changed now. I feel now people are able to see my work, which is why they are able to recognise me. I don’t have any ill feelings. I feel people didn’t talk to me before because they didn’t see my work, because most of my films were never released in India, they didn’t have theatrical releases and OTT didn’t exist at that time. For 20 years, I survived at international film festivals. So, the industry people didn’t have a context about my work and don’t hold anyone against it. It used to feel very lonely as people didn’t know who I am and what work I have done. Lonely in the professional sense that I don’t have a working camaraderie. Now that people know my work, it feels good to be a part of the industry.”

Tillotama is seen in the recently released The Night Manager Season 2. The show also stars Aditya Roy Kapur, Anil Kapoor and Sobhita Dhulipala in lead roles. She is also a part of much-talked-about Lust Stories 2, which premiered on Netflix.