BHUMI PEDNEKAR – “This is the best time to be a female actor in India!”
It has been five years for Bhumi Pednekar in B-town. With seven film releases, all superhits except one, Bhumi is edging closer to being an A-lister. Despite the love she carries for her deceased father, the Pednekar family is proud to be an all ladies’ domain. The pride shows in the kind of cinema Bhumi has chosen. Starting with Dum Laga Ke Haisha and moving on to films like Toilet Ek Prem Katha, Shubh Mangal Saavdhaan, Saand Ki Aankh and more, Bhumi clearly leans towards strong women characters. Yet, her last release was Pati Patni Aur Woh, a film that clearly spelt her interest in a more commercial
zone in Bollywood. So, what’s her gameplan? Bhumi Pednekar shares with Bollywood Insider.
What a year you have had, as despite the superhits, you received brickbats for everything you tried. If you were an old lady, people had a problem; if you were playing a few shades darker, that was a problem… your commercial venture – Pati Patni Aur Woh wasn’t
spared either. Did you get tizzy with all the criticism?
Did you just listen to that list you just shared? Are you seeing the kind of variety I am doling out in the name of cinema? I always knew it would not be easy being an actress, but that is what I always wanted to do. I am living my dream today. I don’t think it gets better than this. If there is criticism, I would like to learn from it and move forward.
This variety would not have been possible a few years ago; do you realise you are a part of the golden era of Bollywood?
I think it’s the best time to be a female actor in India and I’m extremely fortunate that I started my career at a time when parts for women are being celebrated. See the kind of stories that I have done, be it Dum Laga Ke Haisha about an overweight girl and a guy who’s a complete failure, Shubh Mangal Savdhaan about a couple dealing with a topic that is taboo, or Toilet: Ek Prem Katha, where I am on an equal footing with Akshay Kumar.
It is not just me, look at the kind of work Taapsee (Pannu) is doing; she has had some really nice films, all female-led. Alia Bhatt, Deepika Padukone, Kangana Ranaut - everyone is giving their best and doing some fantastic work. I am proud of each of my contemporaries who are changing the script.
Do you see yourself as someone who in a way helped bring about that change?
I cannot take that responsibility but I would say I’m a product of that change. I wouldn’t exist if our content hadn’t revolutionized. Today, Taapsee and I have the courage to play characters more than double our age in Saand Ki Aankh and I get to do a film like Bala where we’re talking of colour bias and conventional notions of beauty and I’m playing a deep-coloured girl. My next is a film called Durgavati, which revolves solely around me. Today, people want to see movies that they can relate with and characters that could be one of them. That’s what’s working. There was an entire period where the actor alone mattered, anything he would do, it would work. But today, writers are celebrated; as cliché as it sounds – content is king! That in itself is a reason to celebrate.
Remembering the positives is perhaps the best way forward. While work is still going slow, the whole of Bollywood mourning Sushant Singh Rajput’s untimely death, any positive thought or vibe is to be cherished. It was beautiful what you wrote for him “Your genius will live on with all the work you’ve done; And through that telescope I’ll spot you again; It will be easy - cause you will be the youngest & the brightest among many we love up there. You truly are a double slit photon, A Neutron Star. You are going to be missed - Our dear SSR .”
Sonchiriya was special to me always, and now it is all the more special. There was so much I learnt on those sets, it did abysmally at the box office, but it helped me grow as an actor, as a person. I have such fond memories of Sushant from the sets. He really gave his work, all his heart. He has left
a void.
You came as an outsider too; Bollywood has always been touted as a dirty, unsafe place – did you come with fears?
I am not defending the film industry when I say the world is a dirty, unsafe place for a woman. You cannot single out the film industry. My sister is a lawyer; I know how the field is out there too. Having said that, I have to say my experience in Bollywood has been nothing I can complain about. I give
the credit for it to my team. I always say that I’ve been fortunate to have been a part of Yash Raj and it’s been a secure environment for me. But because I started working when I was 17, I’ve met people who’ve not had the most pleasant experiences, which is sad. There are so many thousands of people who come to Mumbai every day with hope. What I am glad about is that today, anybody in a place of power, be it a man or woman, who would want to exploit another person, would not just think twice, but would not have the courage to do this because of the various movements like #MeToo and such. And that is exactly what we needed.
How did the lockdown treat you? With all that time in hand, how did you spend your time?
For the first few days I was lost! That was a little bit of exaggeration from my end, but what I am trying to say here is that, it was tough. I belong to a family of workaholics and I can work 24X7. We, Pednekar ladies, are a bunch of very ambitious women. Having been born and brought up in Mumbai, I have a very set life. When I’m not working, I try and spend as much time as I can with my family and girlfriends or just watch TV, read, do some gardening. Now that I said that aloud, I guess my life is pretty simple and basic that way.
The sudden free time was a boon and bane too. But one must do everything one can to safeguard another life.
Many feel Pati Patni Aur Woh is your way of telling people, you are ready to glam up for commercial cinema. Are movies like Dum Laga Ke Haisha, Lust Stories a thing of the past?
Okay, let me say this once and for all, Bhumi, the person, believes in vanity. I want to take that time to get ready and wear make-up, but I don’t think make-up is the reason I look good. It’s just something that enhances my mood and what I’m trying to communicate in that moment. What’s most exciting for me is that when I’m in front of the camera, I don’t care about shedding these layers and I love celebrating my flaws, because I think that’s the most human approach you can have. In real life, I’m nothing like
the characters I play and it’s like an adrenaline rush for me. It’s a lot more reaffirming when you’re appreciated for your craft and not just your beauty. My craft is something that is going to stay with me forever, the way I look is not something I have control over. Pati Patni Aur Woh was me telling
myself that I can do something my favourites like Karishma Kapoor, Madhuri Dixit did in their time. I wanted to live that experience, and that’s all.
What goals and ambition do you have, even beyond cinema?
My list of the people I want to work with is endless. But something apart from films that I’m passionate about is the environment and I’m trying to use my power to change how irresponsible people are towards it. I’m starting a project called Climate Warrior on my social media, which would comprise interviews with people who’ve been fighting this war for many years; I’m going to get their point of view. I’m going to put out a lot of interesting content, it’s going to be simple yet hard-hitting and entertaining, just to send across the message that we have really abused our planet and it’s reached a point where things have gone out of hand.
