Bollywood notable actress, Neena Gupta discussed how she did not get any main heroine roles and how renowned director Girish Karnad warned her about it previously.

Neena Gupta talks about how she’s limited to playing similar roles and isn’t your typical movie heroine

Neena Gupta recently spoke with The Indian Express and recalled that she used to play comedic and silly roles a lot, having acted in the 1982 film Saath Saath. She was regrettably type-cast into roles and opportunities by the movie, and it was later revealed that director Girish Karnad had also forewarned her about this. She stated:

“He said now you will never get a heroine role, you will never get a lead. And that’s what happened. Because once you do a comedy, especially a woman, then you are finished. They cannot imagine you in a romantic lead role. And for many years, I got offers to do the same role, same clothes, same spectacles, same everything.”

Neena discusses her initial disbelief upon discovering the distinction between theater and mainstream cinema

For those who don’t know, Neena Gupta attended the esteemed National School of Drama in Delhi. The actress discussed her formative education at the prestigious institute in the same interview, adding that once she started working in movies, she became aware of the stark contrast between the two industries. As she put it: “I didn’t know that this is a business. And I didn’t know the rules of the business so I made a lot of mistakes.”

When Neena remembered her upbringing under a strict mother

During a previous interview with The Indian Express, Neena Gupta shared memories of her upbringing, revealing that she was raised in a restrictive environment with her mother’s strict guidance.  She said that her mother even forbade her from going out with her female friends and that she was never taught anything about periods or sex.

 

Neena talked about facing social stigma after the birth of her daughter, Masaba

For those who don’t know, Neena had an extramarital affair and gave birth to her daughter Masaba with cricket player Vivian Richards, her former partner. Neena revealed in an earlier interview with Brut India that she experienced a great deal of social stigma because she raised her daughter by herself. She stated:

“I am not a rebel. I am a chooha (mouse). I am not unconventional. I am the most conventional person right now. Just because I had a baby out of wedlock, which millions of women have in India and out… But the media made me into, ‘Ah brave’. After my death the headline will come, ‘Neena Gupta who lived life on her own terms passes away’. I did not.”