At a time when Hindi film industry is churning out films fronted by women and revolving around their stories, Raima Sen would love to be a part of this wave, “provided a script comes my way”, says the actor. But it’s not like Raima is missing out; she’s bagging such roles in Bengali cinema.
“I might not be playing lead roles in Bollywood but am getting good roles of women protagonists in Bengali films,” says Raima, who considers herself “lucky” to have worked with great directors in Bengali and Hindi film industries.
“In Bollywood, I’ve worked with filmmakers like Pradeep Sircar, Reema Kagti, Vidhu Vinod Chopra and in Kolkata, I have collaborated with the likes of Rituparno Ghosh and Aparna Sen,” says the actor, who was last seen in Vodka Diaries earlier this year.
Raima believes that “your work speaks for yourself” and that she needs to be seen more in order to get “good work” in Bollywood. “The more you are seen; people know that you are working and then you are called for roles. I didn’t do Hindi films for the last three years ever since I came to Kolkata, and now, people are calling me [again] for Hindi films. So, I’m quite positive that something will work out soon,” she says.
Raima is hopeful that some of her projects will make it to film festivals. Talking about how some films get applause at festivals but not as much at the box office, she says, “It depends on the audience. You just give a film your 100% and then leave it to them. You can’t make out what they love and what they don’t.” Raima adds that a lot of her films, including Chokher Bali (2003), Parineeta (2005) and Manorama Six Feet Under (2007) got a great response.
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