After a hiatus, Gori Mem is back on Bhabhi Ji Ghar Par Hain. MUSBA HASHMI chats up NEHHA PENDSE, who is all set to play the new Anita, about the challenges role has to offer and the excitement that comes with playing this character
Draped in bright sarees and always dressed to the nines, Anita is one of the most loved characters on TV. However, with Saumya Tandon bidding adieu to the show and the character, it came as a big disappointment to the audience to not be able to see Gori Mem on screen for quite a while.
However, the wait is finally over now with Nehha Pendse all set to replace Saumya Tandon as Anita Mishra in & TV’s Bhabhi Ji Ghar Par Hain.
“I am extremely excited to play Anita. The expectations are very high and I hope I live up to the expectations of the audience,” Pendse says.
With that being said, there is always some kind of pressure on actors when they replace someone, especially for an already established character and the same is with Pendse.
“There is a lot of pressure of course, especially because here is an artist who is loved for playing a character and then you are taking away that image from the audience mind and trying to give your side to it. That is always a scary scenario for any artist. But the beauty in this case is that Saumya had already stepped away from playing Anita bhabhi because of her personal reasons. Also this is probably happening for the first time that the audience is eagerly waiting to see the new Anita.
Hence, here it will not come as a shock to the audience as it does when someone gets replaced overnight. The audience will not feel cheated, since they are already expecting someone to come and fill that void. It is more like a welcome and that is what I think is working in my favour,” Pendse says.
She tells you that there is no such challenge that the role has to offer since she is somewhat similar to the character. “If I was to play Angoori bhabhi, it would have been definitely challenging for me because I would have had to work upon my accent and body language. On the other hand, Anita is just how I am in real life. There is no added layer to the personality. So I believe it will come easy to me,” Pendse, who hasn’t started shooting yet, tells you.
Not only Anita, but even Pendse is back on TV after a short hiatus. And to choose the right role to make a comeback needed a lot of thoughts. “Every actor looks for the best of the opportunities around. One always pick the best of the project that has been offered to him. I did have some apprehensions as to check the right project and I had a few other offers as well which were knocking my door, but Bhabhi Ji Ghar Par Hain looked like the best opportunity to me. To add to it, I also went with my gut feeling,” she says.
Not that the gut feeling is the only priority for Pendse, just like any other actor, the director, producer and the show matters as much for her as well.
“There is always a checklist. If I talk about this show, first, the producers are known to me, second, they are the ones who are known for this genre. So, I am working with people who have been there and done that. Third, it is an iconic show. Fourth, it is an iconic character and the last, but not the least the show has been running for five years now and is still going strong, so it definitely has something good to offer. This show is the one which is ticking off all my check boxes,” Pendse, who started working on TV with Captain House in 1995, explains.
However, the project happened by chance and it was like acting chose her. “I was a very shy girl. My mother enroled me into personality development classes when I was 10. That’s where, Ekta Kapoor saw me because she was looking for young kids and back then, child actors were not that easily available. So, one has to raid all these personality development centres to get the potential child artist. That’s how I came in her vision and she offered me the role. My mother was extremely supportive and she made me take up the opportunity,” she tells you.
In all these years of her career, there is a lot that Pendse has learnt and also there are a few regrets as well. “I started young and I am the kind of artist who just got work. I never asked for it. I am not even a trained actor per se. I learnt the job on the go. At times, I do feel bad about it and realise that I should have taken some professional training so that my understanding of the craft and the job opportunities that I am getting would have been much wiser,” she says.