After spending years in theatre, TV and films, Supriya Pathak feels that the power of television is underestimated in India. She shares with Shrabasti Mallik about beginning her career with art films and why the mainstream did not interest her
You made your debut with Benegal’s Kalyug and thereafter associated with films which were called art films in their age. Why did these films attract you more than the commercial onesIJ
The films that I used to do were very different in their own accord. I could not accept the commercial story lines where a man came and hit his wife and where women were subjugated. Moreover, at that time there was no television, there was no outlet, but we had to work. The so-called art cinema that we did was much more interesting with greater subjects, and had much better roles for us actors. That was why we were associated with those kinds of films. The other reason was that we never had money; these films did not have money. So the number of people who could make those kinds of films and people who could act in them were limited. And at that time, commercial cinema was much larger than the art sphere. Now, of course things have merged. There are no distinct classifications.
Do you think you would have received a better stint as a woman actor now when lines between mainstream and commercial are blurring significantlyIJ
I think it is the right time for everybody, especially for actresses. We did not have the kind of work that actresses are doing now. We were offered a selected few and we all used to vie for it. But today, apart from movies, television also gives you scope and even interesting films are being made. They are more interesting than what we call mainstream commercial.
You have immortalised Hansa (in Khichdi) before taking a break from TV. What about this show interested you to come backIJ
The reason why I chose the show, Jaane Kya Hoga Rama Re, is because the story is unique in itself. It is not based on a particular person or two people. It is the story of a place, which seemed very interesting. And shows like this do not feature in the kind of content that is telecasted.
Today with so many TV channels coming up and with such a range of shows from daily soaps to reality shows. Where do you think television is goingIJ
Honestly, I don’t see it going anywhere. It has been static for too long. People do not realise that TV is the greatest medium that we have, even bigger than films.
Television has more power to reach out to audiences than cinema but we have not been able to use that part. We are not utilising television the way it should be. Even for entertainment, we are giving the audience the same thing over and over again. I don’t know how or why because I do not work with channels but it disturbs me a lot that a medium as good as this is being wasted.
I hope and pray that somebody changes the course of flow. At one point everything was moving in a certain way, and then Ekta Kapoor came and changed it. She came and changed the whole balance of television. There was a head in the channel who allowed that to happen. I hope to see another head come and change the format of what we are doing today and make it more meaningful. My only question or grievance is that why are you not giving quality and just thinking of quantityIJ
At a time when artistes are giving up their national awards, there are many celebrities who are speaking up on the issue. How do you see the moveIJ
I think people have made an issue out of it and are only ‘talking’ about it. They are not discussing the crux; it has been forgotten. This is a problem which is happening. Now that one has returned their award, everyone is following suit. Are we gaining anything from thatIJ Have you been able to make a point that something else has changedIJ No. The problem that a person has died in Dadri, people have forgotten about it. Media is showing pictures of people who have given up their honours.
I believe that if you have a movement, it should reach a culmination. The government is not much bothered about this; they are not even looking at it.