‘Doors Don’t Open Easily For Us’

‘We
have
to
keep
knocking
on
it
before
we
get
a
response.’

Anjana
Sukhani
has
acting
for
23
years
in
films
like

Salaam-e-Ishq,
Golmaal
Returns,
Department,
Don
Seenu.

Still,
you
may
not
even
know
her
name.

It’s
tough
being
an
actor
if
you’re
not
a
star
kid,
and
Anjana
knows
that
only
too
well.

The
actor,
who
is
seen
in
the
Web
series

Bada
Naam
Karenge,
tells

Patcy
N/Rediff,com,
“I
won’t
say
there
were
a
dearth
of
offers
in
Bollywood
but
not
the
kind
I
was
looking
for.
I
grabbed
the
opportunities
that
came
because
it’s
better
than
sitting
home.”

Three
years
after
we
saw
you
on
OTT
last
with

Saas
Bahu
Achaar
Pvt
Ltd
and

Karam
Yudh,
you
are
back
with

Bada
Naam
Karenge.
Why
did
you
take
take
a
break?

I
was
chilling.
(laughs)

Those
shows
released
in
2022-2023-2024.

In
2024,
I
shot
this
show
and
it’s
releasing
in
2025.
So
technically,
I
was
on
a
year
break.

I
think
I
made
decent
amount
of
money,
so
I
decided
to
travel
for
one
year.

Your
character
in
the
series
has
unfulfilled
dreams.
Personally,
do
you
have
any
unfulfilled
dreams?

I
think
we
all
have,
no?

I
have
an
unfulfilled
dream
of
working
with
Shah
Rukh
Khan.

I
am
definitely
waiting
for
a
National
Award.

Personally,
also,
there
are
so
many
goals
to
achieve,
so
many
things
I
want
to
do.

Have
you
ever
given
in
to
societal
or
peer
pressure?

Of
course.
It
always
comes
from
family,
and
starts
right
from
education.

My
parents
were
very
keen
that
I
should
take
up
science.

I
didn’t
want
to,
even
though
I
was
fabulous
in
Biology.

I
did
try
for
them
for
a
while,
but
couldn’t.
Eventually,
I
went
ahead
and
pursued
a
Master’s
in
English
Literature
and
Psychology.

I
gave
in
and
they
also
realised
that
this
is
not
her
forte.

India
is
big
on
arranged
marriages
so
many
women
give
in
to
that
societal
pressure.

You
have
a
master’s
from
Cardiff
Metropolitan
University.
When
did
the
acting
bug
bite
you?

I
am
an
accidental
case
of
being
an
actor
but
wouldn’t
be
anywhere
else.

Acting
chose
me
and
keeps
choosing
me
every
now
and
then.

So
every
time
I
feel
I’m
done,
something
will
come
up
and
pull
me
back.

The
idea
was
never
to
be
an
actor.

I
got
into
modelling
and
made
money.

I
funded
my
education.

I
was
still
toying
with
the
idea
of
what
to
do
next
when
the
offers
came
in.
I
thought
I
will
take
up
just
one
film
but
it’s
ever
enough.

Once
you
are
in
the
trap,
it
consumes
you
completely.
I
guess
that’s
what
happened
and
thank
God
it
did.

You
starred
in
big
films
like

Salaam-e-Ishq
and

Golmaal
Returns
but
didn’t
get
the
big
parts.

Yes.
Sometimes
when
you
don’t
get
the
chance
that
you
are
looking
for,
you
have
to
make
do
with
what
is
offered
to
you.

Salaam-e-Ishq
came
when
I
was
just
starting
out
and
the
star
cast
was
huge.

The
director
was
huge,
production
was
huge.

It
was
also
a
great
character
—
she
was
the
third
wheel
in
the
relationship.

She
was
a
catalyst
in
the
story.

You
have
done
films
in
Marathi,
Telugu,
Tamil,
Kannada,
Punjabi…
Why
did
you
go
for
regional
cinema?
Was
it
because
the
offers
were
good
or
that
Bollywood
wasn’t
working
out
well?

Both.
I
was
trying
to
find
my
ground.
I
didn’t
want
to
say
no
if
a
good
offer
came
in.

Like
Ravi
Teja
is
a
very
big
star
in
Telugu,
and
I
worked
with
him
in

Don
Seenu.
I
would
be
an
idiot
to
say
no.

Ganesh
is
a
huge
star
in
Kannada,
and
I
worked
with
him
in

Maleyali
Jotheyali.
I
won
the
Best
Supporting
actress
award.

I
won’t
say
there
were
a
dearth
of
offers
in
Bollywood
but
not
the
kind
I
was
looking
for.

I
grabbed
the
opportunities
that
came
because
it’s
better
than
sitting
home.

Every
once
in
a
while,
you
disappear
but
return
with
projects
like

Coffee
With
D,
Good
News,
Mumbai
Saga…
23
years
in
this
industry
but
you
haven’t
done
much
work.
Do
you
think
you
need
a
godfather
to
make
it?

Too
late
for
that
now,

na?
(laughs)

Maybe
if
I
was
20,
probably,
it
would
have
been
a
good
idea
to
have
a
godfather.

I
would
partially
like
to
blame
myself
for
being
choosy.

If
I
get
offered
something
I
don’t
like,
I
will
not
do
it.

If
you
pick
up
any
work
of
mine,
it
will
not
be
mediocre.

But
yes,
(I
did)
very
less
in
a
long
span
of
time.
But
I
still
have
juice
in
me,
maybe
things
will
change
now.

OTT
has
changed
the
game
for
actors.

The
parts
we
were
not
getting
in
cinema,
we
can
explore
on
OTT.

Neena
Gupta
had
famously
asked
for
work
on
social
media.
Do
you
call
directors/producers
asking
for
work?

Of
course!
That’s
how

Saas
Bahu
Achaar
happened.

That’s
also
how

Bada
Naam
Karenge
happened;
I
was
a
big
fan
of

Gullak.

I
don’t
come
from
a
star
kid
background,
so
I
have
to
do
a
little
extra.

The
doors
don’t
open
so
easily
for
us.

We
have
to
keep
knocking
on
it
before
we
get
a
response.

There
is
no
dearth
of
work
but
there
is
a
challenge
to
get
the
kind
of
work
that
you
want.

That’s
why
I
have
a
lot
of
gaps
in
my
career;
I’m
not
getting
what
I
want
to
do.

Are
you
happy
with
your
career
so
far?

No,
I
am
not
happy.
I
would
have
been
happier
with
much
more.

I
am
greedy
as
an
actor,
so
obviously
more
films,
more
challenging
roles,
more
glamour
roles…
I
would
be
up
for
it
even
now.

I
don’t
think
this
ends
here.