Actress-singer Suchitra Krishnamoorthi, fondly known as Anna from Kabhi Haan Kabhi Naa has also made her name on stage. Her recent play Ek Haan with Shekhar Suman and helmed by Randhir Ranjan Roy received a great response. In an exclusive interview with The Free Press Journal, actress talks about how OTT is diminishing its charm, why she opted out of films in the 90s, how her relationship with ex-husband Shekhar Kapur has evolved and more. Excerpts:
You have been working nearly for three decades. How do you see the transition now?
It’s a beautiful transition since there are a lot of opportunities now. It is easy to get but difficult to stand out. It’s getting better with time for any actor or age groups. Artists are so much more independent today. There is openness to the thought process, mediums, art forms etc.
Go on…
Sometime back, I saw an actress making a face when asked about influencer, but look what are they doing in today’s time, how brilliant they are. There’s work and respect for everybody. I follow a lot of influencers and I love their content.
Why did you decide to leave films?
It was my personal choice. It was my journey and I didn’t know why people had issues with it. I am not one of them who thinks that there is no life beyond the movies. There is so much more to life.
Do you feel it is a lot easier to break norms through OTT as an actor?
OTT offers so much scope for the content but I feel, they are anchoring over stars. Earlier, content was the star and it was a welcome relief but now the star system has arrived and everyone is struggling due to unreasonable fees of celebrities. The makers should back the content and not the stars. Films are a different ballgame but why an OTT needs that first week viewership and unnecessary competitiveness.
What pushed you to act on stage?
Since childhood, I have been on stage. I find theatre a very honest art form and has a magical space. Everything else has evolved from theatre. Besides this, I keep recording songs. I did a project with Zeenat Aman and Pallavi Joshi. I am doing a project titled Dunk, where I play a cop that involves some great action too.
Your daughter Kaveri is all set to debut in a Kunal Kohli film with Vardhan Puri. What advice did you give her?
I told her to follow her own path. It is important for any artist to make their mistakes and standby their decisions. I don’t think that an actor’s success is necessarily about talent rather how your stars are aligned. She needs to focus and work hard. She herself is dying to break away with my or her father’s name (laugh).
How is co-parenting going on with your ex-husband Shekhar Kapur?
People have the right to ask me but sometimes I don’t know how to handle and that becomes silly. I don’t know why people are so obsessed with my marriage. Since now we have a child so it is not about you anymore. We both are civil people and would like to be that way.
