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PHOTO: R. Ravindran

MANY FACES Nandita Das: ‘I express myself in everything I do’

As always Nandita Das is dead on time for the interview, dressed in an unassuming brown and cream sari. Nandita plays the lead role in Chitra Palekar’s “Maati Maayi”. Does she know that another fine young actor has been warned not to go the Nandita Das way, choosing films because they are activist, offbeat, intriguing, plead rural women’s cause, raise social issues — in fact for any reason other than commercial success? “And what was the actor’s reply?” is Nandita’s eager response.

Is she picky about her roles because she thinks she can make a difference? “Look, we know cinema cannot bring about social reforms. But unless you believe you are making a difference, however small, to the way people think, see and feel, how can you work with conviction?”

She has no hesitation in explaining her stance. “Acting is just one of the things I do. Yes, it is a creative, joyful process, but so was teaching in Rishi Valley, or the talks I give about issues I care about. I express myself in everything I do — whether pottery, painting, storytelling for children, writing or talking about social problems.” She believes music is the highest form of art. It remains a passion, though she has confessed a lack of discipline for sadhana and full-time dedication. We remember her saying some years ago how it embarrasses her to be recognised more than her artist father (Jatin Das), writer mother (Varsha Das) and their contemporaries, not because of better or greater achievements, but simply because of her screen roles. That sense of balance is Nandita’s chief personality trait. “I take criticism very well, because I’m self critical,” she states unequivocally.

This combination of talent and self-analytical confidence makes her an obvious choice for any role that demands fine-tuned substance. Even in films that did not quite take off, her performance did, as in Mrinal Sen’s “Amaar Bhuvan” for which she won an award in Cairo.

What a variety of characters to grapple with — from her debut in “Parinati” (1989) to maestro Adoor Gopalakrishnan’s “Naalu Pennugal” (2007) and debut-director Chitra Palekar’s “Maati Maayi” (2007)! For the last she bagged the Best Actress Award at the Madrid International Film Festival as Chandi the outcaste, traumatised after motherhood about burying children in the village graveyard, a job that she was once proud to fulfil as a family duty. Nandita managed to blend the grim and the tender, humour and distress, insanity and compassion in her portrayal, transformed from sundari and sadari to a ghoul in rags and matted hair. No wonder Chitra Palekar exclaimed as she introduced the film in Chennai, that Nandita was the best choice for any director. “She will not find such a fine actor for herself when she directs a film!” Interestingly, Nandita’s awards have come for the “regional” films, where she has repeatedly discovered more integrity and passion.

Being Nandita Das, she could not avoid a brush with controversy with her yet-to-be-released first film “In Such Times”, showcasing an arresting cast from Shabana Azmi, Naseeruddin Shah and Paresh Rawal to mature theatre actors. The police in Santoshnagar, Hyderabad booked a case against the crew for shooting in a graveyard without requisite permission. Just a flicker for an artiste who faced conflagrations with Deepa Mehta’s “Fire” and “Water”!

Is the approach of women directors different from that of men? “Yes, but in intangible ways. Like you watch a certain scene and say, only a woman could have seen it quite that way.”

Through the talk, almost like a refrain, Nandita calls herself “restless”. She explains also how some activities — from making clay pots to directing her own film — have taught her to curb this restiveness. “An actor is responsible only for her work. A director has to mastermind the entire show! You have to stay calm,” she sighs, but not without excitement. Perhaps she shouldn’t try too hard. So long as it is not self-absorbed but other-centred, to be edgy is to be alert, concerned, and creative. An asset for an activist, actor, now mobilising the powers of an entire team as a film maker.

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