Richa Chadha has from the very beginning of her career been known for her unconventional choice of roles – be it Gangs of Wasseypur or Masaan or Love Sonia. She pushes the envelope with each film and makes us all fall in love with her. And if her choice of films weren’t enough, there’s one thing that I absolutely love about Richa and that is her candidness. She’s unfiltered, has no qualms voicing her opinions, and the most important part – she stands by what she says. That explains why it was such a delight watching her on the latest episode of #TheGirlTribe.
As usual, Richa brought her honest self forward and spoke about the things we’ve all wondered about – the casting couch in Bollywood, our obsession with an actress’ age and dealing with trolls. Unlike most people, she didn’t deny that the casting couch exists but even said that she has been propositioned a bunch of times but she hasn’t paid attention to it. “Acting is an art form and at the end of the day, there should be a certain amount of purity to it“, she said. Of course, there are actresses who are trying to break into Bollywood who might fall for this but the unfortunate thing is that they end up nowhere – with no money, no fame and this feeling of being used. “It’s almost like choosing between the stairs of the elevator“.
Actresses are often said to have shelf lives and Richa pointed out something very important – “When a woman’s worth is tied to her reproductive cycle, it becomes a problem”. There’s so much pressure on actresses – right from the start of their career, they’re reminded of the dreaded ‘shelf life’ of their careers almost like they’re ketchup. Seriously. What does a woman’s marital status or her reproductive cycle have to do with her talent?
Watch the episode to hear Richa talk about the things that matter.
Thank you Richa for putting across truths in the most interesting way possible and for bringing forth your honesty and candour. More power to you!