That’s how Shabana Azmi, who will be missing the premiere of her film in London owing to a leg injury, consoles herself. Roshni K Olivera chats with the actress…

ROSHNI K OLIVERA (BOMBAY TIMES; April 11, 2010)


 Shabana Azmi has always been on the move. But for the first time, she’s been forced to rest at home owing to her fractured foot. She will also be missing the London premiere of her film It’s A Wonderful Afterlife. Shabana’s surely disappointed, but she believes in taking things in her stride. In an interview with BT, the very talented actress spoke about her film, her weight gain and loss and Meryl Streep…

How was the forced break?
• I badly needed the break, pun unintended! I was on the go, nonstop living out of suitcases, travelling madly. The enforced rest calmed me down. Sundays have been spent with family and close friends, starting from lunch, tea right up to dinner. My great regret is that I had to cancel all shows of my play Broken Images, but both Alyque and Raell Padamsee have been most understanding.

Will you be travelling abroad for the premiere of your film It’s a Wonderful Afterlife?
• I was looking forward to the premiere in London at Odeon Leicester Square. I had put on 25 lbs for the film and have lost most of it. Goldy Notay, who plays my daughter, went up three sizes too. She is back to size 8 and we were exchanging emails on how glamourous we were determined to look for the premiere in contrast to the way we look in the film etc. Unfortunately when I went to the hospital the other day, my leg had to be put back in a cast for another two weeks! So I’m back on the wheelchair and I’ve had to cancel plans for the premiere…but I tell myself ‘things without remedy should also be without regard’.

What’s the best part about your character in the movie?
• That I’ve never played such a part before. I play Mrs Sethi, a fat Punjabi mother who has a single point agenda… that of getting her daughter married. Roopi, her daughter, keeps getting rejected because she is overweight. The film shows the extreme lengths a mother can go to. It is a Gurinder Chadha brand of film — wacky, mad! In the UK, the Ealing comedies which were comedic but also had an element of horror have been very popular. However, it’s a completely new genre for India. I’m hoping the film does well and opens up the doors for a new genre.

The film will have a simultaneous release in India and Pakistan…
• That’s because it is a British production and although it is in English, it has a core that is South Asian.

Isn’t it difficult to gain weight for a character and then shed those kilos? Years ago you did the same for Mandi…
• Yes, but as the doctor reminded me ‘Ma’am you were 25 years younger!” My cholesterol, triglycerides and thyroid levels went up alarmingly and I’ve been taking medication to get them back to normal, but these are the hazards of an actor’s life because an actor is her own instrument. If you play the sitar for instance, your skill lies in both the dexterity of your fingers and on how finely tuned the sitar is. The actor has only her own head, heart and body to play with… and to scale it to the requirements of the part.


Gurinder Chadha has called you the Meryl Streep of India…is it the finest compliment you’ve received?
• That’s just a manner of speaking. I’ve been referred to as Meryl Streep only to tell an audience unfamiliar with my work what kind of roles I’ve done. It has nothing to do with matching histrionic ability. I am a great admirer of Meryl Streep and I would probably shrivel up and die of embarrassment if someone were to introduce me to her as India’s Meryl Streep!

(Contributed by Meena Iyer, RenukaVyavahare, Smrity Sharma and Sharin Wader Butani)