‘Oh My God! We’ve Done Something Great’

‘The
real
change
will
happen
when
more
powerful
roles
come
to
me.’
‘I
am
looking
forward
to
that
change.’

It’s
a
breakthrough
year
for
actor

Chhaya
Kadam.

She
has
been
working
steadily
in
Marathi
and
in
bit
parts
in
Bollywood,
but
it
wasn’t
until
this
year
that
Chhaya
became
a
name
with
critical
recognition
and
widespread
adoration.

In

Laaptaa
Ladies
and

Madgaon
Express,
she
proved
that
sometimes
the
best
performances
in
a
film
come
from
its
most
unexpected
roles.

Fresh
off
that
success,
she
headed
to
the
77th
Cannes
Film
Festival
with
not
one
but
two
films
—

All
We
Imagine
as
Light
and

Sister’s
Midnight.

All
We
Imagine
as
Light
scripted
history
by
winning
Director
Payal
Kapadia
the
Grand
Prix
that
put
her
name
on
the
global
map
alongside
the
film.

Chhaya,
who
plays
a
pivotal
role
in
the
film,
was
visibly
moved
to
tears
as
the
audience
erupted
to
give
a
standing
ovation
in
a
thumping
response
to
the
team.

Since
then
her
phone
is
buzzing
with
congratulatory
messages
and
interview
requests
—
something
she
had
never
experienced
to
such
a
volume
in
her
15-year-long
career.
Interestingly,
she
did
not
have
a
slightest
clue
that
the
month
of
May
would
be
so
eventful
for
her
as
she
had
planned
a
month-long
break
to
spend
time
with
her
family.

Back
from
the
surreal
experience
of
Cannes,
Chhaya
is
currently
enjoying
every
bit
of
her
newfound
success.

“When
I
started
my
work,
I
was
told
by
an
industry
director
that
there
are
no
roles
for
someone
of
my
age.
Either
you
have
to
be
very
young
or
very
old.
And
he
said
that
I
don’t
fit
in
either
bracket,”
Chhaya
gets
reflective
about
her
journey
in
a
phone
interview
with

Mayur
Sanap/Rediff.com.

It
took
you
almost
15
years
to
have
this
moment
of
spotlight.
Do
you
feel
you’ve
finally
arrived?

Yes,
I
feel
that
it
has
come
in
the
course
of
my
life.
Most
good
things
have
happened
pretty
late
to
me.

But
all
my
struggles
are
worth
it
if
the
end
is
so
good.

I
have
never
planned
my
path,
whatever
came
my
way
I
made
sure
to
do
it
with
best
of
my
ability.

Let
me
tell
you,
my
audience
has
been
loyal
to
me
since
the
beginning.
They
loved
me
and
my
work.
My
recent
work
has
introduce
to
a
new
lot
of
audience.

Have
you
taken
a
break
to
enjoy
this
moment
or
you
are
already
back
at
work?

No,
I
am
currently
enjoying
my
spare
time
at
home.

My
brother,
sister-in-law
and
their
kids
came
to
Mumbai
in
May
for
a
holiday.
I
had
left
a
full
month
reserved
for
them.

And
suddenly
the
Cannes
news
came
to
me
and
I
was
away
from
them.

Now
that
I
am
back
I
am
doing
interviews
and
other
things.
I
might
have
not
been
able
to
do
this
had
I
given
my
time
for
shooting.

While
your
performances
were
lauded
in
two
Cannes
films,
people
also
got
to
see
new
Chhaya
with
your
fashion
moments
on
the
red
carpet
and
interviews.
Did
you
have
fun
with
that?
What
was
the
idea
there?

(Laughs)
For
me
Cannes
was
only
about
fashion
during
all
these
years.
I
had
seen
those
huge
gowns
and
lavish
clothes.

So
when
I
told
my
friends
that
I
will
be
attending
Cannes
they
asked
me
if
I
was
wearing
a
gown
too.

Initially
I
was
not
comfortable
with
the
idea
(of
doing
fashion).
But
then
I
spoke
to
some
of
my
friends
and
decided
to
hire
a
stylist.

I
wanted
to
look
stylish
and
comfortable,
and
also
showcase
my
individuality.

I
took
it
as
a
big
responsibility
on
myself,
because
I
was
not
going
to
represent
Mumbai
or
Maharashtra,
we
were
there
to
represent
India.

I
have
been
working
for
so
many
years
but
this
is
the
first
time
I
was
seeing
myself
like
this.
I
enjoyed
it
a
lot.
Now
I
feel
why
didn’t
I
do
it
before?
(Laughs)

Can
we
say
fashion
is
the
new
skill
you
have
acquired?
Are
you
going
to
continue
with
it?

No!
While
I
enjoyed
it,
I
must
say
it
is
very
tiring.
It
is
not
easy
at
all.

The
girls
who
like
it,
it
is
easy
for
them.

I
don’t
think
I’ll
ever
be
able
to
keep
up
with
it,
except
maybe
on
a
special
occasion.

You
are
also
quite
active
on
social
media,
especially
on
Instagram.

Yes.
Everyone
was
telling
me
that
I
should
build
up
a
social
media
presence.

I
am
not
used
to
this,
(but)
when
you
are
in
this
profession,
you
can’t
say
no
to
certain
things.

I
manage
my
Instagram
and
I
am
learning
how
to
enjoy
it.
It
helps
me
to
communicate
with
my
fans.

I
opened
my
Twitter
(X)
account
right
before
going
for
Cannes,
but
I
haven’t
posted
anything
there
yet.

I
constantly
tell
myself
now
to
spend
a
lot
of
energy
on
social
media,
because
it
is
quite
time
consuming.

You
wrote
a
beautiful
post
in
memory
of
your
mother.
What
do
you
miss
about
her?

One
of
the
dreams
that
remained
unfulfilled
for
me
is
that
I
could
never
take
on
a
plane
journey.

I
had
hoped
to
do
that,
but
she
left
me
(Chhaya’s
mother
passed
away
in
August
last
year).

So
I
felt
like
I
should
wear
her
sari
and
wedding

nath
(nose
ring)
as
her
memory
with
me.
And
that’s
how
I
took
her
with
me
to
France.

Who
all
are
there
in
your
family?
What
do
people
from
your
hometown
in
Konkan
think
of
your
success?

We
were
five
siblings,
but
my
two
brothers
passed
away.
My
father
also
died
years
ago.
My
mother
and
I
used
to
live
together
in
Mumbai.
I
am
alone
now.

For
me,
my
friends’
circle
is
my
go-to
family.
My
house
is
always
filled
with
my
friends.

People
are
happy
that
their
Chhaya

Tai
is
a
part
of
the
film
that
created
history.
I
am
very
happy
to
see
they
are
celebrating
my
success.

You
said
in
an
interview
that
only
you
could
play
Parvati
in

All
We
Imagine
as
Light.
Can
you
elaborate
on
that?

Sometimes
when
you
hear
a
character
you
get
an
idea
how
much
you
can
contribute
to
it
as
an
actor.

When
I
heard
about
Parvati
(her
character
name)
from
Payal
I
thought
that
I
had
seen
all
these
things
in
my
life.
I
told
her
that
I
only
could
do
this
role.

It
was
not
out
of
arrogance
but
just
the
fact
that
I
had
experienced
most
of
the
things
that
she
goes
through
in
the
film.

You
have
played
a
character
of
a
small-town,
abrasive
woman
in
many
films
before.
Do
you
think
it’s
time
the
film-makers
should
re-imagine
you?

I
feel
that
every
artist
wants
to
do
something
different.

I’m
always
hungry
for
a
role
that’s
different
from
what
I
did
previously.

And
honestly,
there
are
different
reasons
to
pick
a
project
every
time.

Sometimes
I
like
the
role.
Sometimes
the
length
of
your
role
is
short
but
the
script
is
interesting.
Sometimes
you
do
a
film
out
of
favour
because
the
director
is
a
friend.
I
have
done
films
like
that
too.

And
sometimes,
an
artist
picks
a
project
when
he
or
she
is
out
of
work
for
many
days,
just
to
remain
busy.

Right
now,
I
am
waiting
for
the
opportunity
that
would
challenge
me
more.
But
if
it
doesn’t
come
then
I
will
select
from
the
four
or
five
projects
that
typically
come
to
me,
and
I
will
try
to
do
something
different
in
it.

Do
people
confuse
your
real
self
with
your
on
screen
firecracker
persona?

People
who
know
me
well
would
say
that
I
am
very
sweet
and
simple
in
my
real
life.
Some
would
also
say
that
I
am
a
nagging
person.

But
I
will
tell
you
one
thing,
I
do
not
make
people
feel
that
I
am
an
actress
so
you
treat
me
in
a
certain
way.
That
is
why
person
connect
with
me
more.

Some
people
come
to
me
thinking
oh
she
must
be
like
Manju

Maai
(Laapataa
Ladies),
Kanchan
Kombdi
(Madgaon
Express),
Chandrakka
(Nude),
Suman

Akka
(Sairat).
They
think
I
must
be
very
strict
as
person.

But
after
talking
to
me
for
a
while,
that
notion
goes
away.
They
feel
like
I
am
their
own.

Are
you
happy
with
the
way
film-makers
are
imagining
unconventional
roles
for
women?

Yes.

When
I
started
my
work,
I
was
told
by
an
industry
director
that
there
are
no
roles
for
someone
of
my
age.

Either
you
have
to
be
very
young
or
you
have
to
be
very
old.
And
he
said
that
I
don’t
fit
in
either
bracket.

This
happened
right
in
the
beginning
of
my
career.

When
I
was
leaving
his
house,
I
decided
that
I
would
never
meet
this
person
again
in
my
life.

Thankfully
these
things
don’t
exist
anymore.

The
audience
wants
to
see
real
stories
of
real
people.
It
is
no
more
about
just
the
hero
and
heroine.
There’s
work
for
all
kinds
of
actors.

You
are
having
such
a
fantastic
year
and
we
are
only
halfway
through.
What
new
changes
do
you
hope
to
see
happening
next?

The
fact
that
I
am
giving
eight
interviews
in
a
day
is
little
new
for
me
(Laughs).
This
is
a
good
change.

Indian
cinema
has
achieved
such
a
big
recognition.
Seeing
these
people
celebrating
our
win
makes
me
very
happy.
When
I
look
at
them,
I
say,
‘Oh
my
God!
We
have
done
something
great.’

The
real
change
will
happen
when
more
powerful
roles
come
to
me.

I
am
looking
forward
to
that
change.