Out of the Shadows

In fact, she so looks the part of the woman who everybody would want for a mother, that much to her horror, she was offered the role of Amitabh Bachchan’s ma — regardless of the realitythat the superstar has chins and eyebags Shefali would not acquire for another few decades. This was after her portrayal of Pyari in Satya was making waves and "Would you believe it, in my impulsiveness I accepted it too," laughs Shefali, though later she wisely pulled out of the project.

On a less jocular note she continues, "While the industry big-wigs have acknowledged my performance, nothing has come forth in terms of work." Her arena of interest, she outlines, is films like Viraasat, Maachis and Bombay, but what have come her way are `bhabhi-behen-friend’ slots. "I want a role where I can show my talent which is acting and not flaunting my legs," she says sharply, a little bitter because, all that she has on her hands right now in terms of movies, is a Gujarati film.

While her stature might not have grown significantly on the big screen, winning the Screen Award for Satya has only helped her dig her feet firmly into the world of TV stars. This `Zee Woman ’97 Most Popular Actress on television’ hassigned up for Antakshari on Zee TV, where she will replace Pallavi Joshi. A role she had her eyes on and candidly tells you that she had spoken to the producer Gajendra Singh a long time back for it. "I told him that if he would ever be re-casting, I would like to be the host."

But despite notching new wins, she says she continues to be insecure about herself as an actress for she doesn’t think she is a great actress and very firmly believes she is not beautiful, "It’s sad to be an actress and not look good", she says. She goes on to add that she is a very conscious calorie-counter but that’s a difficult one to believe because a few minutes later she wonders aloud why she has been sent mousambi juice when it was strawberries and cream that she had asked for. But her soul searching doesn’t last long as she bounces out of the bed to deftly apply a white strand in her hair. Despite disappointments, work is what fuels her enthusiasm for life. Whatever role it might be, Shefali feels that ultimately what mattersis characterisation. Then she doesn’t care if she’s playing a 40-year-old or if it’s just a "three-scene" role. "Even with Satya, the role wasn’t as big on paper as it appeared on screen. Everyone was amazed when it grew larger than life," she bubbles.

And though marriage to actor Harsh Chhaya is the best thing which ever happened to her, it still comes second to work. "I’m really orgasmic about my work," she says, a passion which was kindled by her husband who talked her into taking up acting full-time. But though meticulous and ambitious, the home-body inside this career-woman, reappears every fourth day which she takes an off after three days of shooting. And that is a day she spends cooking, doing up her home, writing prose and poetry and watching films. And also to indulge in general chores like shopping for vegetables.

What about her star status, doesn’t she get mobbed? Shefali believes that only Amitabh Bachchan and Michael Jackson can be called stars. "Nobody on television is one. And an actor whothinks that he is a star is taking himself too seriously…," she says with the same flash of sense and wisdom which has made her so popular — and whatever she says made her a bright star on the small screen.