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Amrita Rao: They say you are not a TV actress unless you've fainted
Roshni Olivera| TNN | Jul 26, 2016, 01.00 AM IST
Amrita RaoThe actress on her small screen experience and why her respect for television stars has grown.
Your debut show on TV 'Meri Awaaz Hi Pehchaan' Hai recently came to an end. How was the experience? Did you faint at least once like most TV actresses?
I had developed cold feet initially when I was about to dive into the 'daily soap pool' because of the horrifying stories that I had heard of TV actors practically living, eating and sleeping on the set. But Bollywood actors do get many fringe benefits on TV. Like, my contract said 10 hours including hair and makeup, which is luxurious by TV standards. We shot in schedules, the way we do in films because we shot in real locations rather than a fixed set, so the production team also needed a day off for the recce. We wanted to defy existing norms with our show. The concept and my role gave me an incredible rush throughout.
Are you looking at doing more TV shows?
I would love to do fiction shows but finite only. I'm convinced that finite fiction is the future of Indian television and you will not have endless shows where the story and characters are minced based on TRPs. Episodes will be shot in advance, making it possible for a director to give his overall finishing touch to it. Actors will not be married to the set as I'm sure weekends will be declared a holiday. The golden phase of fiction shows too will come soon.
There was a time when doing TV was looked as a step down for a film actor...
That changed for India with one game show hosted by Mr Amitabh Bachchan. Today the film industry is dominating non-fiction shows on TV and soon they shall also dominate fiction. Also, channels will not just cast you because you are a movie star; it's imperative for an actor to have a connect with the masses. I feel proud that I'm perhaps one of the first actresses from my generation to have explored this genre.
It's said that acting on TV is tougher than acting in films...
A film is just two hour content, so you at the most have two or three emotional scenes that you have to concentrate on, but on TV, every episode has an emotional high point. You are crying almost every day and then comes a point when you realise that it's not real because in life we don't cry every day! Tears do sell on a daily medium. That apart, I recall how in a scene I had to fall backwards in a swimming pool and due to time constraints, I had to do it myself despite being a non-swimmer. I loved all these new challenges. My respect for television actors has grown. They say you are not a TV actress unless you have fainted on set, but I was determined to defy that.
On the personal front, you've not been able to go on your honeymoon because of your busy schedule...
That's right (laughs). We have been incredibly occupied with our work schedules, but it will happen soon.
A lot has changed most definitely and for the better.
Your debut show on TV 'Meri Awaaz Hi Pehchaan' Hai recently came to an end. How was the experience? Did you faint at least once like most TV actresses?
I had developed cold feet initially when I was about to dive into the 'daily soap pool' because of the horrifying stories that I had heard of TV actors practically living, eating and sleeping on the set. But Bollywood actors do get many fringe benefits on TV. Like, my contract said 10 hours including hair and makeup, which is luxurious by TV standards. We shot in schedules, the way we do in films because we shot in real locations rather than a fixed set, so the production team also needed a day off for the recce. We wanted to defy existing norms with our show. The concept and my role gave me an incredible rush throughout.
Are you looking at doing more TV shows?
I would love to do fiction shows but finite only. I'm convinced that finite fiction is the future of Indian television and you will not have endless shows where the story and characters are minced based on TRPs. Episodes will be shot in advance, making it possible for a director to give his overall finishing touch to it. Actors will not be married to the set as I'm sure weekends will be declared a holiday. The golden phase of fiction shows too will come soon.
There was a time when doing TV was looked as a step down for a film actor...
That changed for India with one game show hosted by Mr Amitabh Bachchan. Today the film industry is dominating non-fiction shows on TV and soon they shall also dominate fiction. Also, channels will not just cast you because you are a movie star; it's imperative for an actor to have a connect with the masses. I feel proud that I'm perhaps one of the first actresses from my generation to have explored this genre.
It's said that acting on TV is tougher than acting in films...
A film is just two hour content, so you at the most have two or three emotional scenes that you have to concentrate on, but on TV, every episode has an emotional high point. You are crying almost every day and then comes a point when you realise that it's not real because in life we don't cry every day! Tears do sell on a daily medium. That apart, I recall how in a scene I had to fall backwards in a swimming pool and due to time constraints, I had to do it myself despite being a non-swimmer. I loved all these new challenges. My respect for television actors has grown. They say you are not a TV actress unless you have fainted on set, but I was determined to defy that.
On the personal front, you've not been able to go on your honeymoon because of your busy schedule...
That's right (laughs). We have been incredibly occupied with our work schedules, but it will happen soon.
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