Surekha Sikri, who plays mother-in-law to Neena
Gupta in the fi lm, hopes it will open up avenues for actors her age
Surekha Sikri, Kalyani Devi aka Dadisa of the
longrunning telly soap Balika Vadhu, is returning to mainstream cinema with
Junglee Pictures’ Badhaai Ho. Directed by Amit Ravindernath Sharma, the
slice-of-life comedy revolves around a Delhi boy, Ayushmann Khurrana, who
suddenly discovers that his mother, played by Neena Gupta, is pregnant again
and he’s going to have a second sibling. The veteran actress plays Neena’s
mother-in-law and says she was instantly drawn to this “interesting and sweet
character”.
“It’s a great time to be in films as so many good
scripts are being written,” says the two-time National Award-winning actress,
adding that she kept telling Neena and Gajraj Rao, who plays her son, that they
are the second lead, after Ayushmann and Sanya Malhotra.
She adds that while she hasn’t faced a similar
situation in her immediate family, she has uncles and aunts who are younger
than her. “It’s quite common in smaller towns, but in cities, people worry ki
log kya kahenge, more so when your older son is of marriageable age, maybe even
has a child of his own. This awkwardness is the fun part of the story,” Surekha
chuckles.
She informs that she had read in the papers that a
couple in Bihar committed suicide after they learnt that the woman was pregnant
again. “Though she was only 39, she had grown-up
children with kids of their own and the shame was too much to bear. I was shocked
to read this because there’s nothing wrong in romancing your wife, no matter
what your age,” she asserts.
The actress was last seen on the big screen in
Amole Gupte’s kiddie adventure, Sniff, last year, a film that not many saw. Why
don’t we see her more often in films? “I need good scripts. This one came out
of the blue. Badhaai Ho is my comeback film in the real sense. I did a couple
of movies years ago, then, got busy with TV. I hope this will open up more
avenues for actors of my age,” she says optimistically.
And what are the chances of Balika Vadhu
returning? “Nothing is impossible. It was an iconic show, and everybody put
their best in it, making sure we didn’t compromise on the quality. I wouldn’t
mind if it came back,” she signs off.
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