As Tara Shinde, one of the scientists leading the Mars mission, Vidya Balan steals the show in the recently released Mission Mangal. She has done this before, yes. Yet, she has been missing from the screens for a while now. In an interview, she tells us what kept her away from films and more. Excerpts:
Why have we not seen you more often on screen in the recent past?
It has been two years to Tumhari Sulu, may be that is why people are asking me this. Otherwise, I try and do one film a year. All the ideas that I ended up liking after Tumhari Sulu were not ready scripts. They had to be written; they were ideas. Mission Mangal was the only script that appealed to me.
What was interesting about playing Tara Shinde?
I think it was the overall package. [Co-writer] R. Balki narrated the script to me and it is one of the rare instances in my career where I said yes immediately after the narration. I loved the way the script was written. The science was simplified, though not compromised.... I liked the way they had fictionalised the life of the scientists. And, it was such a proud moment that I thought it should be celebrated. This is the fourth film I have been offered on this subject, but this script just grabbed me. It has humour. It is entertaining. And then I had a chance to work with all these wonderful female actors, besides teaming up with Akshay Kumar again.
The poster, with Akshay Kumar getting more space than the female actors, led to a lot of debate.
A still from the film
It is not as much about the story as it is about a wise business decision to market the film using the biggest superstar’s face most prominently. My experience has taught me that if I can use it to my advantage, then I should. If it is drawing more people into the theatre because his face is on the poster, so be it. You will see the film for what it is.
But, did it not bother you?
No, it did not. Because I know the rationale behind it. I know the film I signed up for. I know what is film marketing. I am happy to use Akshay Kumar’s stardom to my advantage.
Do you think female actors are getting their due more than earlier?
Most definitely. Ten years ago, when I started doing these kind of films (women-centric), people thought it was just about two or three films. No one thought it would change anything. But they worked and slowly there were other women-centric films with other female actors, they also worked, and it led to a [trend]....
At the time of Ishqiya (2010), people told me to do films opposite big heroes. They said, “You need to play the heroine.” I followed my gut.... It worked well for me. Thankfully, what followed has worked well for female actors. Even in terms of pay parity, I think we are better.
Are we?
I definitely think that we are in a better place. But again, you have to take into consideration the economics of it. That is what dictates everything. The male superstars have a prudent track record. They play a huge part. They do not even need to demand, they command their pound of flesh. We are still establishing ourselves as bankable actors who can draw in an audience. We are at a stage where we are demanding a pound of flesh. It will take a little while before we command it....At least, we are in a place where we are demanding it.
You have shown a lot of interest in biopics. You already have two in the making—one on mathematician Shakuntala Devi and a series on Indira Gandhi.
Since The Dirty Picture (2011), I have been offered innumerable biopics. I did not even know what a biopic was before that.... So many biopic offers came my way that it is not even funny. While the women around whose lives these films were planned were very interesting, the stories, most often, have not come together very well. In the case of Shakuntala, I thought the story came together beautifully.... And, Indira Gandhi, I have always wanted to play. It is taking time, but I guess web series takes time.
Now that Siddharth Roy Kapur (her husband) has his own production company, will you join him?
No, not at all. We decided not to work together as producer and actor. Never say never, but I do not see any possibility of us working together. I am also not inclined towards being a producer.