Sushmita Sen Says Bollywood Is A Business With Humongous Egos And Rejecting Work Comes At A Price
Even though we don’t see a lot of her on screen these days (not as much as we’d want to), Sushmita Sen has always been on our minds. Why, you ask? Well, apart from the fact that she is a cosmic beauty and an extremely warm person, her positivity on social media just keeps making you fall in love with her over and over again, you know? When we finally saw her return to our screens in Disney+ Hotstar’s series Aarya, we thanked the entertainment gods for it. The series, and Sen herself, have been receiving oodles of praise. Which makes us think, what kept her from returning sooner?
In an interview with Hindustan Times, Sushmita Sen spoke about how she was waiting for the right kind of project to give the green light to, for her comeback. Naturally this would mean declining the other projects that came her way, which couldn’t have been easy. After all, we’re aware of how delicate the relationships in Bollywood are. And Sen pretty much confirmed it.
“We’re in a business with humongous egos and that’s not a secret. Each time you say no then that’s a problem, you’re a problem, it might mean you don’t want to work.”
Now haven’t we heard that before? The attitude towards those who aren’t in the top bracket of most demanded stars has always been somewhat pitious. We see so many talented, even veteran, actors take up roles that evidently they’re not too proud of because to decline work coming their way would make them look too picky or haughty. Moreover, most people in the industry offering work would think they were doing the artist a favour.
Also Read: Aarya, Starring Sushmita Sen, Is A Lot About Women Dealing With The Aftermath Of Men’s Bad Decisions
Fortunately Sushmita Sen has always lived her life on her own terms and this stress of ‘what will people think?’ doesn’t seem to have given her any sleepless nights. She says, “For me it’s always been about being honest and responsible about the work I take up. Good, bad or ugly. I chose this, so I’m responsible. So those offers that came to me sometimes weren’t good enough, sometimes it would be like we’re doing you a favour by keeping you in the industry. That doesn’t work with me.”
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While we’re yet to Sen in a movie, the OTT space is as perfect a medium as any to remind fans that she’s great at what she does. The rise of streaming platforms in India has given actors a lot of meaty content to play with. Many actors, some with a substantial presence in Bollywood (Saif Ali Khan, Abhishek Bachchan, etc.) are foraying into web series and direct-to-streaming movies. They reach a wider audience and don’t have the restrictions that mainstream Bollywood films have. Sushmita Sen’s role in Aarya felt like it was custom written for her!
After Sushant Singh Rajput’s demise, a lot of theories began swirling around on how the actor wasn’t getting good roles due to nepotism and Bollywood’s infamous camp-politics. Eventually, the police investigations revealed that the actor was offered several projects which he chose to reject.
If you ask me, it is sad that the industry considers actors who’re picky about their roles to be uninterested or not serious about their careers in Bollywood. I am glad Sushmita Sen waited for the perfect comeback vehicle. Then again, should we even call these things ‘comebacks’ if the artist didn’t exactly quit the industry but was just introspecting and waiting for the right role to come their way? Methinks not! And dear Bollywood, learn to take no for an answer without any caveats attached!
