Madhoo EXCLUSIVE Interview: I was part of an era where action heroes were given the whole movie

'Phool Aur Kaante' and 'Roja' fame Madhoo Shah is every die-hard Bollywood fanatic and '90s kids' favourite. Her sizzling chemistry with Ajay Devgn in the popular song 'Maine Pyaar Tumhi Se Kiya Hai' or her role as a shy village girl in Mani Ratnam's Tamil hit Roja, she has left an everlasting mark in the hearts of the audience.

Next, Madhoo, born Madhubala, will be seen as 'Apsara Menaka' in Samantha Ruth Prabhu's 'Shaakuntalam'. Ahead of the film's release, the actress in an exclusive chat with Pinkvilla talked about taking a long sabbatical from acting, pay disparity, feeling typecast during the initial phase of her career, and more.

Excerpts from the interview:

You took a long sabbatical of 15 years from acting and made a comeback. Considering how fast cinema is changing with time, did you face challenges? 

Yes, I took a very long gap. I'm not sure whether it is exactly 16 years because every now and then I would do short dance that would funnily take me away from my home for two days or four. But properly, to come back as a professional, it being around that time and yes, a lot has changed. However, the emotions and the feel about filmmaking doesn't change...what changes is the economist of it, the globalisation and truly we are one world today as Hindi cinema is seen in America and everywhere else at the same time and of course with OTT platforms, everything is for everyone. So in that sense, the exposure is quite daunting. You cannot escape anything and for me to make a comeback after so many years, I always feel like a newcomer. I always have that sense of insecurity and uncertainty and I always feel like I'm new and need to do my best. Yes, there is a certain level of confidence and a sense of knowing having been in the industry and worked so much. But I always experience that nervousness. When I worked in the 90's, I was new and my acting was different from the acting of the older generation/veterans. Now, the 90's have become old and the new lot is very different than what I felt and expressed. 

You belong to the Mani Ratnam era, the romance and kind of cinema. Do you think times have changed and we don't get to witness the same chemistry now in the lead actors? 

Even though Mani sir is known for making social dramas, and now historical, with the base and backbone of the film being political but the detail is in the romance that he portrays in all his films and characters. Even Manisha Koirala and Shah Rukh Khan's chemistry in Dil Se, the romance is just so beautiful and yet without even a single touch, or without even wearing any exposed clothes...romance is the soul. So that's why the heroines in his films look divine and I feel amazing to have that opportunity to work with him on two films. Right now, we are kind of merging, are westernised and so our culture which kept us from not doing a few things, the barriers are being broken. We are all happily wearing clothes that are more sexy, doing things that were once considered private to show on the screen. A lot of barriers have been broken. Times have changed but the chemistry between the actors is not about like- 'what you do' or the project, it's about the actor's feeling right within them- so to that extent cinema has changed. Everything is being shown explicitly but not necessarily the chemistry can be sensed, so they are two completely different things. 

Be it Neena Gupta or Sarika, the opportunities and the roles they are getting is very different. How do you see the change and the opportunities for senior actresses? 

There are many actresses like Sarika ji and Neena Gupta ji who are doing amazing roles because yes, it has opened up for all age groups. You don't have to be locked away because you are married, over your age or for size, and that is the best part of the industry today. It gives us the 'so-called yesteryear actresses' to really come back and live their dream. I don't have to relegate myself to doing some character roles but doing roles that are making me even more proud than my initial career. 

Did you face sexism or felt typecast during the initial phase of your career? 

Talking about sexism and typecasting, I was playing the heroine role so all the heroines at that time were typecast. We had some amazing songs to dance and sing to and then we had a few romantic scenes but I got lucky to do a few films like Yeshwant and Pechaan and even in my first film, Phool Aur Kaante. I played varied kinds of roles in different languages and have no complaints about the roles that came my way but yes, at one point towards the end of my career, I decided to exit, and that's when I started to feel I wanted to do more but I was not getting that kind of roles. I was part of an era where action and action heroes were given the whole movie. They were all about action and revenge with Akshay Kumar, Suniel Shetty, and Ajay Devgn on the rides. Having done films like Yodha, and Roja in the South, I wanted more like these movies to come my way here too, but it did not, and I found my life partner, so I decided to exit and have no regrets about that.

Pay disparity? 

Talking about pay disparity, I never questioned it but accepted it as a norm. So kudos to the girls today who have completely transformed the status of heroines in the industry. Today, movie goes and sells in the name of a female actor and so are box office collections based on them. be it Priyanka Chopra, Deepika or Alia. So by the box office tab, they should get whatever is duly correct. The girls are really standing up for it and am really proud of them. 
 

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