Bendre matters

Bollywood beauty Sonali Bendre is now being recognised for her acting prowess thanks to her powerful performance in Anaahat, says RAJIV VIJAYAKAR

Sonali Bendre, known more for her leggy beauty than her histrionics, has wooed the audience with her work in Amol Palekar’s internationally-targeted and commercially successful Marathi film Anaahat. Never having reached the topmost bracket despite being ambitious, Sonali radiates confidence and security, glad that she has finally got recognition for her acting prowess.

On why she accepted Anaahat:

“Two years back, I was dubbing for Tera Mera Saath Rahein when Amol Palekar approached me with his story idea. I told him I was game for it but I needed to see the final draft. There were certain things in the play that inspired Anaahat that I was not very comfortable about. Thankfully, Mr Palekar and I saw eye to eye on them and he had already deleted those portions when he gave me the final script, which I loved!”

On what stimulated her about her character of the queen:

“I liked the fact the queen stands up for herself without losing her dignity. The subject had the potential to be crude and crass too. In the play, she chooses a man who was her ex-boyfriend, which I thought was a complete deviation from the story of a woman who was being forced to do something despite her royal status. Mr Palekar and I junked this idea. I liked also the fact that the film was feminist in a way, but it was not an in-your-face, aggressive kind of feminism.”

On how it feels being finally recognised for her acting prowess:
“Five or six years ago, I think I would have been thrilled about it. But today I am just glad that they finally recognised the actress in me.”

On her plans now:

“See, I do not have a game-plan, never have had. Since I never wanted to be an actress, whatever I got and achieved was a bonus and God’s kindness. My family was going through bad times and I took up the responsibility of doing something about it. Modelling was a way of earning my pocket money while studying, and that led to films, beginning with Aag and Naraaz.

At that point of time, I wanted to do films for only about two years and I never realized when nine years had passed! I intend now to do films that mentally stimulate me, make me want to get out of my bed and go on a musty, dusty, rusty set!”

On life after marriage:

“I cannot understand the kind of queries people ask about whether my husband Goldie is happy about my working after marriage. The first thing in any relationship is mutual respect. How can I respect, or spend my life with, a person who cannot respect me for what I am? I have worked hard to reach where I am, stuck to certain principles and not taken shortcuts.

I am proud of being Sonali Bendre, the Maharashtrian girl who got educated, became a model and then an actor. I have treated my work as my profession and I have never taken my mother along anywhere, and I would like to believe that there is a lot of dignity and status attached to my name. And obviously Goldie Behl understands all this, and in a way, a filmy family would and does understand and respect a person like me better.”

On why she has done so many cameos like in Chori Chori, Chal Mere Bhai, Dhaai Akshar Prem Ke and Lajja?

“I think that it all started very early with Bombay and I did not learn my lesson! But I did Lajja because I wanted to work with Mr Rajkumar Santoshi, and I loved my song too! I would love him to direct me in a full film. In Chori Chori my role was slashed. And the directors of Dhaai Akshar.. and Chal Mere Bhai had promised me full films which of course never happened! Probably the fact that I was seeing Goldie and never had affairs convinced them to back off because they felt that I was going to get hitched anytime.”

On whether she will do hardcore commercial films now:

“Why not? But the role should excite me, and so should the script and money!”