'Offers would be like we are doing you a favour, doesn't work with me'

Picture Courtesy: Official Instagram Account/Sushmita Sen

Sushmita Sen has been a part of the Hindi Film industry for the last 24 years. On the professional forefront, there have been some immense highs and some major lows. There have been blockbusters and failures. In an interview with Hindustan Times recently, the actress spoke about how this fraternity functions, saying no to offers that didn't excite her and doing lesser films as compared to her contemporaries.

She first said how Bollywood is a place driven by egos and stated, "We're in a business with humungous egos and that's not a secret. Each time you say no then that's a problem, you're a problem, it might mean you don't want to work." She continued, "For me it's always been about being honest and responsible about the work I take up. Good, bad or ugly, I chose this, so I'm responsible."

She also added, "So those offers that came to me sometimes weren't good enough, sometime it would be like we're doing you a favour by keeping you in the industry. That doesn't work with me." She also spoke about how social media can never change how a person is in real. She said, "When people look at a person and find that person same for 26 years, it does matter. No amount of social media marketing can change that because more than a generation has seen you being consistently you. It takes a lot of brickbats, appreciation, ignorance, learning and everything culminates into the person who'll be remembered."

Sen rose to fame after she became the first Indian to be crowned the Miss Universe in 1994. Bollywood happened in the form of Mahesh Bhatt's Dastak in 1996. And success in Bollywood happened with Biwi No. 1 and Sirf Tum in 1999. The actress is also known for films like Aankhen, Samay, Maine Pyaar Kyun Kiya, and Chingari.

Her most memorable and charming role, however, was in Farah Khan's directorial debut, Main Hoon Na, which came out in 2004. Sen essayed the character of Miss Chandni, a chemistry teacher who slowly finds herself being smitten by her own student, who actually is an undercover army officer. She shared electric chemistry (no pun intended) with her leading man Shah Rukh Khan.

After the release of films like Dulha Mil Gaya and No Problem in 2010, Sen took a sabbatical of over a decade. She came back with Aarya this year, a web-series directed by Neerja fame Ram Madhvani, and was praised for her intense performance. Talking about how much she has changed as an actor in these ten years, she said, "I think I'm older enough not to be excited about formats. I'm excited about stories, characters, presentation… whether it's online or theatre doesn't make much of a difference."

Catch up on all the latest entertainment news and gossip here. Also, download the new mid-day Android and iOS apps.

Mid-Day is now on Telegram. Click here to join our channel (@middayinfomedialtd) and stay updated with the latest news