SAYANTANI GHOSH, who plays Daljeet Bagga in Sony SAB’s Tera Yaar Hoon Main, tells MUSBA HASHMI what made her come on board the project, being in the industry for 15 years and why she sees this role as a challenge

What made you come on board Tera Yaar Hoon Main?

There are many factors for it. Of course I wanted to associate with Sony SAB to begin with. My association with the producers goes a long way and the show itself attracted me. I wanted to be a part of a light hearted comedy drama because that’s not what people associate me with. They see me experimenting with family dramas, mythological and fantasy shows, but this was something new and challenging for me. Also, I was amazed when the makers of the show thought of me playing Daljeet, a Punjabi character. Like I said, at times you tend to get stereotyped, that is what happened and people started thinking of me as a Bengali character. But after 15 years of my career, to get a chance to play something different and to be able to challenge myself as an artist was a huge reason for me to come on board the show.

How easy or hard it was to get into the skin of the character?

I can’t term it easy or hard, but yes it was challenging. As an artist, when you have worked over a period of time, everything that’s hard becomes a challenge. But also because of your experience, everything becomes easy after a point of time. As I had said before, comedy or light hearted drama is something I haven’t explored before. I always feel that it is one of the most difficult genres. So, in terms of the genre the show has challenged me. And again, like I mentioned before, to play a Punjabi and to speak like one is difficult. I had to bring those nuances to my character. A lot of my audience have told me that if they didn’t know that I am a Bengali, there’s no chance they would have not think of me as a Punjabi. Yes, it is challenging, but then all these compliments make the job easier.

How has your journey been thus far?

It has been an emotional one with a lot of hard work. I am overwhelmed  that I have reached this stage in my life and career. It took years of heart break, sitting at home and thinking of myself as a failure to reach here. My journey has been my teacher.

I am not a trained actor, neither I come from a family where this profession comes easy. I come from a family where the emphasis is only on academics. But, I chose this field and, of course, my family has supported me throughout. I very humbly say that my journey is my guru, work is worship for me and my view is not myopic, I see my work as my personality. I can’t segregate acting from my personality. It’s been a journey of self-evolvement and commitment.

In these 15 years of career, do you think you should have done something differently or shouldn’t have done at all?

There are times when you question yourself and think ‘why have I chosen this field’. I could have got into a more secure field. Everything comes with its advantages and disadvantages, so is this profession. But, standing today, I wouldn’t say I want to become anything but an actor. I love dance and acting. This is the best profession for me where I can get to express myself, play so many different characters and get love from so many people. I have no regrets. There are doubts sometime, but I love being an actor.

What has been the toughest project till date?

Every project has a challenging factor. I can’t name one. Some are emotionally challenging, while others are physically challenging. I have done Dare to Dance and Mahabharat, they both were physically challenging. Then there are roles like Neela Parikh from Naamkaran, which challenged me emotionally. Hence, I can’t pick and choose projects.

Is there a checklist you follow before taking up projects?

I look at the basic things — the show, what is the story about , how important is my character and whether I want to do such a character at that time in my career. But, one thing that always tops my list is creatively how important my character is. Also, I want to do different things and roles, because otherwise you tend to get bored.

A lesson you have learnt during the pandemic.

I am a Virgo and I plan things in advance. But the pandemic has reminded me the classic proverb: Man proposes, God disposes. We tend to get into a zone where we stop living in the moment and start planning our future. So, my focus right now is to enjoy the moment.

Also, 2020 has reminded me the importance of family, although I always crave for my family, but because of my work I couldn’t spend much time with them. But in the last one year, I have spend about nine months with my family. Also, it is only the good health that matters.