Interview of Mita vashist--TRISHNAJI

What's been the response to your vamping act in Kahani Ghar Ghar Ki? Oh, it's been fabulous so far. The character has become the high- light of the show. I've got compli- ments like, "Oh Meeta, you're a riot.' I can only thank Ektaa (Kapoor), the entire team and the viewers for it. The best part is that my character (Trishna) is believable. She's not one of those who makes horrendous faces or raises an eye- brow to be villainous. She's not a caricature. You're doing television after a long time. It's funny, sort of strange how I dis- appear and come back. Corporates took over television and it became increasingly difficult for actors to display their creativity. So I kept away from TV. But you know what? Television has changed radically over the years. Today, television is a pro- ducer's market. Ektaa has really changed the equations. Every second TV actor is a star and that speaks a lot about the reach of the medium. As for me, I've just been around, doing my kind of stuff..I'm fortunate that I've got strong roles, be it in films or TV. An actor cannot survive without strong roles. You once did prime quality TV shows. Please explain the move behind signing Kahani.., a show that is no great shakes. I don't agree with you. If you see my character in Kahani… it's written with so many nuances.. In fact, when the storyf was narrat- edto me, I was told that the role was similar to the one I played in Pachpan Khambe Laal Diware. That show was quite close to my heart. So, I couldn't refuse. What happened to the film script you'd written? That was about seven years ago. You know right from my actors, including Om Puri to the camera- man, everyone was ready. All we needed was funding. I took the script to NFDC. But their script panel didn't find it worthy, I guess. Later, a friend told me that those who said rejected the project were actually female directors. I was stunned. Women directors were not encouraged then. An actress can take to take direction only in two cases: one, if she's out of work, and second if she's about to retire. Things have changed today though..independent filmmaking is widely encouraged..that's a pos- itive sign of progress. You did nude scenes in Kasba and Siddeshwari over 15 years ago..it was a time when cinema audiences were still traditional. What kind of reaction did you get then? Do you regret doing them? I don't regret anything. At a time when even kissing wasn't permis- sible on screen, I did those nude scenes. And journalists wrote about how a young woman, all of 24, has been exploited. My reaction was, 'exploited'? No way. I guess that was the only way they could accept the nude scenes. I thought they were aesthetically done,,they were more dignified than shaking hips in a vulgar song. As an actor and a woman, you have an independent voice..and you've been living separately from your husband. Is that difficult? It's not difficult as such. I don't equate singledom with independ- ence either. I'm still friendly with my husband. It was a fabulous rela- tionship..some things are just not meant to be. Television has changed over the years. Today, it's a producer's market. Ektaa has really changed the equations She has worked with..