Something remembered...

SHABANA AZMI WAXES ELOQUENT ON FILMS, THEATRE, MARRIAGE, CO-ACTOR SMITA PATIL AND MORE. JITESH PILLAAI LISTENS IN

- JITESH PILLAAI

It's truly a privilege and joy to know her. A powerhouse performer, an unshakable voice of conscience and radiant presence, she has been part of our cinematic and theatrical landscape for over 50 remarkable years. She isn't just an actor, she is history, legacy and a living inspiration rolled into one. From the nuanced, humanist storytelling of Satyajit Ray and Mrinal Sen, to the layered emotionality of Aparna Sen and Zoya Akhtar, and the grand, bold strokes of Shyam Benegal to Karan Johar, she has moved with absolute grace between art house and mainstream cinema. Her ability to embody characters with such truth and texture is known to only a rare few. In this conversation, we speak about everything... her rich body of work across film and theatre, her memories of working with legendary co-actors like Rekha and the late Smita Patil... what drives her as an artiste and as a deeply engaged citizen of the world. It gives me immense pleasure to sit down with someone I've long admired and loved, my most, most, most favourite actor, the inimitable Shabana Azmi.

You did roles which were full of emotional turmoil. Did any of it take a toll on your mental health?

Yes. During Arth, I had to do a scene where I begged my husband for another chance. That was tough. As actors, we want to show strength and dignity but begging is humiliating. And Mahesh Bhatt told me, “I don't want tears. You have to hold on to the threads of dignity, even though it’s a lost cause.” The moment the director said “Cut,” I broke down. I cried uncontrollably for half an hour. I went home with a pounding headache and felt shattered. Over time, as I did more films, I learnt how to process and separate.