Bollywood actress Raveena Tandon believes that a woman can have it all: a robust career, a healthy marriage, multiple children...the works.
And, we have proof.
At the time of this phone interview on Wednesday, the Indian National Award-winning actress and mother of four was trying to sort out her boy’s tuition schedule in Mumbai.
Tandon, whose credits include Bollywood films Andaaz Apna Apna, Daman: A Victim Of Marital Violence and Maatr, was in the UAE on Wednesday to launch a new Dubai hot spot, called BoxTop Sheesha Lounge, while her son was back home in India.
“But I do goof up at times. Like today, I forgot to tell my son there was no tuition class. But most of the time I wing it well. We women are [not] called devis [deities] in India for no reason. Just like the devis we have thousands of arms and we can multi-task well,” said Tandon.
The 43-year-old star was last seen in the rape revenge drama Maatr, in which she plays a woman who is gang-raped, along with her daughter, by a set of powerful politically-connected men. She later embarks on a quest for revenge. For Tandon, Maatr was symbolic of paying it forward after having survived in Bollywood for more than 26 years.
“Maatr is very close to my heart… After so many years of work — I have seen it all: commercial success, awards, rewards and everything. But as a citizen and a human being, you reach a certain level of maturity where you feel that since society has given you so much, it is time to give back. As actors, we have a responsibility and we cannot keep thinking that I will do this film because it will make a lot of money,” said Tandon, who is married to film distributor Anil Thadani.
The film explored issues that required attention and dialogue, claims the actress.
“Domestic violence and abuse against women and children is a global problem. In our country, we need to have stricter laws and sometimes, those laws are hardly implemented. Some criminals do their time swiftly, come out of prison and repeat those crimes or go about threatening the victim’s families who went against him. That’s the saddest part. There should be fast-track courts for sexual crimes and these men should be made an example for the rest of the criminals.”
The actress feels that the need of the hour is harsher punishment.
“It is almost like criminals don’t have the fear of the law anymore… In countries such as the US, we have first-degree, second-degree and third-degree murder charges based on the severity of the crime. We must have stricter laws supporting women.”
She’s equally vocal about the Harvey Weinstein scandal that has rocked Hollywood and sparked a global conversation about sexual misconduct and harassment at workplace.
“Let’s just not focus on Bollywood though. I have seen women face it in the airline industry, too. Even if [a woman] work[s] doubly hard and she gets a promotion, there will be people who will turn around and say that she probably slept with her boss. It is about time women speak up,” said Tandon.
Though she hasn’t faced any grave sexual misconduct during her tenure as an actress, there were a couple of men within the industry who acted out of line. But she shut them up swiftly.
“Once or twice it happened, but the guys apologised to me the next day because they feared that I was going to blurt it out. I would have seen to it that I kick butt,” said Tandon. However, point out to her that sexual abuse has little to do with the victim but is an exercise in power and control by the predator, and Tandon says women should learn to be gutsy and learn to say ‘no’ to sexual favours in exchange for work. “Speak up [women], and when they do we need to stand by them and support them. Instead of victimising or shaming them, we need to believe them completely,” said Tandon.
Just like the rest of the world, there’s a culture of fear and silence surrounding sexual abuse and misconduct in Bollywood too.
Perhaps what worked in her favour was that she always navigated her career on her own terms. She calls her path “chequered” because she has taken sabbaticals whenever she felt like she needed a break from acting and films.
“I have never planned, choreographed or orchestrated my career. I have just taken life as it happened. I consider myself as a few of the lucky ones since I have given up films on a whim and gone back to acting when I felt like it. I have restarted again. God has been very kind. I call my fans my well-wishers because they have always appreciated my work. It is because of them that I am relevant today.”
It also helps that Bollywood has become more streamlined and professional. Tandon is currently working on the season 2 of the children’s talent reality show Sabse Bada Kalakar and sifting through scripts.
“Everybody in Bollywood has broadened their horizons and cinema has opened up with different kind of movies being made. We are getting equal roles to play now so it’s a good run for women in Bollywood now.”
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Did you know?
Raveena Tandon wasn’t the only star at the launch of BoxTop Sheesha Lounge at the Imperial Suites in Bur Dubai, on Wednesday. Accompanying her were actors Suneil Shetty, model and actor couple Shawar Ali and Marcela Shawar Ali and producer-director Fauzia Arshi.
Raveena Tandon’s guilty pleasure:
She loves to binge-watch TV series. Currently, she’s hooked on to the political thriller Madam Secretary, time travel series Outlander and political drama Designated Survivor.
Her secret to being fit:
Multi-tasking at home, a career and her children burn calories. But Tandon’s secret is to keep aside 45 minutes to herself every day.
“Whether you use that time to walk or swim or do yoga, it should be kept aside as your me-time. That’s the secret to my fitness.”
