Suchitra Pillai: People have told me to keep a diva in the industry

In an interview, Suchitra Pillai talks about her career resurrection because of the OTT space, ego hassles in the industry and more.

Suchitra Pillai has been in the industry for over three decades, and is enjoying a new phase of her career in the web space, with the recent success of her web show, Broken News 2, proving it. Now, the actor reveals she is happy to explore the OTT space as it comes with no ego hassles, which is not true for the world of Bollywood. (Also read: The Broken News season 2 review: Sonali Bendre is the beating heart of this captivating, incongruous newsroom drama)

Suchitra Pillai was recently seen in the second season of Broken News.

The actor has made a name for herself in the industry with projects such as Red Alert, Hip Hip Hurray, Beintehaa, Rishta.com, and Cabaret Cabaret. She has appeared in Hollywood projects such as The Other Side of the Door and The Valley. When it comes to the web space, she has featured in diverse shows such as Kehne Ko Humsafar Hain, Made in Heaven, Betaal, Call My Agent: Bollywood, Bestseller, Rana Naidu, and Big Girls Don't Cry.

On career on OTT

Opening up about finding work on the web space, Suchitra says, “It's wonderful. It's a resurrection for all of us. I haven't worked as much as I work since I turned 50”.

“I'm 53 now, but since I turned 50 I've worked so much more than I ever did when I was in my 20s. And it is thanks to OTT. The roles that I am getting, especially women oriented roles, each one has been a different role…. It is different from the bad saas (mother-in-law), bad massi or maami that I used to play on TV. It gives me leeway to play with your talent, which is great,” adds the actor.

On Broken News 2

She was most recently seen in the second season of Broken News, which also stars Sonali Bendre and Jaideep Ahlawat. The show was released in the month of May on Zee5.

She is happy that it has gotten a wonderful response, adding, “It is great to be part of a show that people are respecting and enjoying. I'm glad to be part of the show… There were no egos. There were no tantrums. It was not happening. So, it made it very easy for all of us to work together”.

On ego hassles

In the interview, she points out that there was no ego hassles on the set of the OTT show. Does it mean that it is present on the Bollywood set?

“Definitely there are. I have worked with the biggest stars when it comes to the movies, from Saif Ali Khan to Aamir Khan to Salman Khan. When you are working in Bollywood movies, there is a lot more ego hassles than when you are doing an OTT series,” points out Suchitra, adding, “I have not faced it directly when I was doing the movies. All my co-stars were warm, easy and easy to get along without any airs”.

But that doesn’t mean that it is not present, as she continues, “I might not have faced it, but I have seen people throwing their weight around people”.

“I've seen it… People having a diva attitude. I don't conform to those definitions. People turn around and tell me to have a diva attitude to avoid people walking all over you. To a point that is true. People tend to take you for granted a little bit, if you don't put your foot down about certain things,” she states.

At this stage of her career, Suchitra has started voicing her opinion, and formed a name for herself as a “credible senior actor in the business”.

“I won't take any sh*t from people. I will never change my attitude towards my work. It is a blessing to be where I am today, and to get the opportunities that I'm still getting. I have no regrets looking back. And there's a hell of a lot more to come from me,” she exclaims.