Birthday Special: Why Seema Biswas is not happy with the way mainstream Hindi cinema treated her!

Very few would dispute that Seema Biswas ’ performance in Shekhar Kapoor’s Bandit Queen ranks as an all-time great. When Seema did Bandit Queen, she was a leading actress in the repertory company at the National School Of Drama. The next work that got Seema international acclaim was Deepa Mehta’s Water. Seema once told me, “Once I sign a film it becomes a part of my life. I make a sincere effort in every film. I try my level-best to live up to the way a director imagines a character. Deepa is one director who knows what she wants and how to get it. I gave everything to Water.” Seema is not really happy with the way mainstream Hindi cinema treated her. She thinks of herself as part of Bollywood. But does Bollywood have a place for an actress as evolved as Seema? After Bandit Queen people told Seema not to accept Khamoshi The Musical. She was warned she’d be slotted in the heroine’s mother’s role. She is glad she did it. Seema went by her instinct. She didn’t know anything about the way Bollywood functioned. As a passionate actress she craves to do more roles like Bandit Queen, Khamoshi and Water in this life. When Bandit Queen became so unnecessarily controversial, it hurt Seema’s career. Seeme waits patiently for more roles like B_andit Queen, Water_ and Khamoshi. Another rare opportunity Seema had to shine was in Sooraj Barjatya’s _Vivah_ . She knows the trend in Indian cinema is to slot a 35-plus actress in the senior bracket. Sometimes, when she sees a good performance or a good film she gets tearful and disturbed. She confesses, “ I’m dying to do substantial roles. I wish I had the power, temperament or calibre to make my own films. But I don’t. I’ve a long way to go. I may not be a great actress. But for even a two-minute role I give my 100 per cent.” Whenever Seema finishes a role she looks at the performance and feels dissatisfied. Deepa Mehta remembers being agitated with Seema for her lack of confidence in her own abilities. Seema told Deepa she had full faith Deepa’s abilities. Not in her own abilities. Deepa Mehta is full of praise for Seema. “She is one of my favourite actresses from any part of the world . She can play anything. I’ve worked with her in five films. In each she was a different person altogether. There is nothing Seema can’t do. I am dying to work with her again.” Says Seema. “I’m dying to do good work. I’m not a limited actress. But I can prove myself only when I get a chance.” Subhash K Jha is a Patna-based journalist. He has been writing about Bollywood for long enough to know the industry inside out. Read all the  Latest News ,  Trending News ,  Cricket News ,  Bollywood News ,  India News  and  Entertainment News  here. Follow us on  Facebook,  Twitter and Instagram