Rashami Desai is making her comeback to television after four years with Star Plus’ new series Sayoneee. The actor has now opened up about what made her take a hiatus from the small screen. Rashami revealed that she was often stereotyped as a television actor and told that her “career is over”.
In an interview with Indian Express, Rashmi said, “I had stopped working in between for 3-4 years. I did a Gujarati film, and I did a film on Zee5, Hisaab Barabar. I didn’t work a lot, I didn’t feel like it. I did get TV offers, but I couldn’t connect, or maybe I was not ready at that moment. I usually disappear for 3-4 years after doing a show. I really wanted to unlearn a lot of things. I did a lot of workshops; I was working on myself.”
She added, “There is a lot of hard work you do as an actor. When you do a film, you get time to work on yourself, but TV is a long commitment, and you are living that character even without realising it. So there were a lot of things I wanted to unlearn. I had my own journey. I didn’t feel like working. I just felt that if I wasn’t convinced of something, I wouldn’t convince my audience.”
Rashami further shared that she felt underestimated and objectified in the industry because she was a woman. “A lot of projects happen where women are only used as objects in a frame. I found that very wrong; we are way more than that. Her job is not to look voluptuous, sexy, gorgeous, glamorous; there is much more to her. We have been stereotyped, which needs to change. When a woman steps into the field and keeps working hard, she deserves recognition,” she said.
The actor said that despite believing in her acting abilities, she struggled to find the right platform to showcase her talent. She felt that people often reduced her identity to that of a television actor and judged her appearance instead of focusing on her performances.
“TV does not make you an object. It gives you a platform. It is a very underrated platform. TV has a stronger reach than any other platform, but it’s seen as taboo. So many people told me I am an overexposed face. I was told my career is over,” she said.
Sayoneee premiered on September 23 on Star Plus. New episodes air daily at 7:30 PM and are available for digital streaming on JioHotstar.
Also Read | Rashami Desai Opens Up About Battling Depression For 8 Years: ‘I Was Carrying A Lot Of Baggage’