From Chamko to Chaitali

SHE is, by overwhelming consensus, the most overlooked actress of her time. But, as one critic points out: 8216;8216;In this business, it...

SHE is, by overwhelming consensus, the most overlooked actress of her time. But, as one critic points out: 8216;8216;In this business, it8217;s those loud, boisterous performances that bring you the accolades.8217;8217; And Deepti Naval made a career out of playing either the silently suffering romantic, or your everyday girl-next-door. Still, it is difficult not to be riveted by the earnestness in every character she played, be it the persuasive Miss Chamko in Chashme Baddoor, the vulnerable chawl-dweller in Katha, or the younger sister in Angoor.

It is that same sincerity, combined this time with a tigress-like aggression, that she returns with to the screen after a long sabbatical, during which, 8216;8216;I loved and lived the best years of my life.8217;8217; In Leela, she8217;s an independent single parent. In Shakti she8217;s the doormat wife who eventually revolts against her husband. And in Freaky Chakra, she8217;s a cranky widow who re-examines her life when a young tenant moves in. Excerpts from an interview8230;

Is there a role you8217;d have fought tooth and nail for?
Maybe Umrao Jaan. I would have loved to play that role. It was never offered to me, I don8217;t even know if I was actively working at the time. But it8217;s one of those roles I look at and wish I8217;d had the opportunity to play. To be honest, I don8217;t want to chase projects. Everytime I have, I8217;ve felt cheap.

Do you regret not being more serious about your career?
The only reason I didn8217;t do more work is because I chose not to. I can8217;t blame anyone else for it. I just didn8217;t want to do the same thing over and over again. And then there was my personal life8230; I wanted to live life to the fullest. I met and fell in love with Vinod Pande and we travelled a lot, and we just wanted to be together all the time. In any case, I didn8217;t see any reason to hang around here.

What drew you back?
During Vinod8217;s illness in America, he began egging me on to work again. He always thought I had much more in me than I8217;d given to the movies. I did Leela in Los Angeles. Then I was offered Shakti, for which I flew to Rajasthan, after which I returned to the US. After his death, I realised there8217;s so much more to the life I8217;ve lived that I still have to translate into my work. But because I8217;m back, it doesn8217;t mean I8217;ll do just anything that comes my way. I am an actress, but I8217;m not an actress who has nothing else to do.

Your performance in Leela is drawing rave reviews8230;
Until now, I8217;ve always played characters that are very far from who I am, so it was nice to play Chaitali, which was much closer home. Personally, I8217;m always confused, easily rattled, but internally strong. Chaitali is very much like that, only she8217;s a little more confused, and I8217;m a lot more independent than her. Dimple Kapadia used to tell the director that he should switch our roles, but I think I was always better suited to play this role.

You8217;re writing a script yourself, aren8217;t you?
Yes, and there8217;s a role in it that I want to play. It8217;s a deeply complexed character, a very sensitive person. I am also going to publish a booklet of my poetry called The Silent Scream.