Vandana Pathak believes that getting the look of a character right is a crucial part of the acting process. She emphasizes that casting actors closer to the real age of the character can make the portrayal feel more authentic. As she puts it, “Aaj kal toh youngsters baal aur daadi safed karke dada aur dadi ka kirdaar nibhaate hain (These days, youngsters are using hair dyes to turn their hair gray, or growing beards to play the roles of grandparents). It doesn’t come across as convincing. I’m not saying actors must be the exact age of their character, but the age difference should be reasonable enough to make the portrayal believable. When the age difference is more in sync, the audience can connect with the character more easily.”
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When asked about her role as Sharad Kelkar’s mother in the upcoming show Tum Se Tum Tak, with them being just a year apart, Vandana Pathak laughs and explains, “Yes, that’s true. But for me, my theatre background makes it much easier to step into any role. As theatre artists, we are trained to play characters across a wide age range. In fact, during my early days in theatre, I played the mother of an actor who was older than me! So, the age gap with my co-actors doesn’t concern me much. What bothers me is when young actors are made to look much older than they are. That tends to create a bizarre visual effect, and the audience finds it difficult to believe.”
Reflecting on the shifting landscape of Hindi television, Vandana Pathak shares her thoughts on the current trend of shows ending abruptly and prematurely. She reminisces about her role in Ek Mahal Ho Sapno Ka, a groundbreaking daily soap that ran for several years, from January 1999 to November 2002. She says, “It was truly the mother of all daily soaps. Back then, no one thought about how long a show would last. Ek Mahal Ho Sapno Ka ran for an incredible number of years, and my character in it was both amazing and complex. She evolved beautifully, transitioning through various shades as the story progressed.”
Vandana Pathak continues, “The current trend, however, seems to be that many shows are losing their longevity, primarily due to a lack of diverse content. Most shows today seem repetitive, following the same successful formulas rather than innovating or creating something new. This lack of variety is what I believe is contributing to the early shutdowns of so many TV shows.”
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