Delnaaz Irani Finds Herself At Crossroads: Old To Play A Young Heroine's Friend, Young To Play Her Mom!
Delnaaz Irani is out to tell you why you don't see her on screen, these days. She is clearly lamenting that she is short on work but explains justifiably why this phase has happened in her career. We hope 'Even This Will Pass Away'
Delnaaz Irani. Gosh, where's she? Not too long ago, her adorable looks and nice comic timing made her one of the most loved actors in the industry. But we have missed her on screen recently, right? While she rocked the role of Sweetu, actor Preity Zinta’s friend in Kal Ho Na Ho, Delnaaz does not ignore the fact that she cannot do those roles anymore. Sad, but why if we may ask!
Replies Delnaaz, “I always believe that everything goes hand in hand, you need to do your networking plus you need good luck of being at the right place at the right time. But the phase that I am in now is just wrong timing. I don't blame luck or networking. 15 years ago, I was younger and so I played Preity Zinta's friend in Kal Ho Naa Ho (released in 2003) but today I cannot say that I want to play Alia Bhatt's friend. And if I say I am ready to play a mother, I would still look young. I am too old to play a friend and too young to play a mother and somewhere I am lost in between,” she says.
The actor says that the fact that people feel she can only do comedy has also restrained her options. “Since I have always been doing comic characters, people don't look beyond that. It’s very sad and I feel very dejected at times. I can give you an example of my recent film My Mother's Wedding. It's a very touching film revolving around the relationship between a mother and a dead son. I was the protagonist and nobody could have ever imagined that Delnaaz, who plays comic characters in every film and every show, will be able to do this character.
But a 23-year-old man came to me with his script saying he wants to direct it with me in the lead. Mind you, there were a lot of other actors he could've cast but probably he took a chance with a comic actor--- and I feel this way you can break an image. In the show Ek Deewana Tha, I played the character of a tantrik. It had all the shades. She was positive, negative, scary--- but there was nothing comic about the role. Like I said, as an actor, you should be ready to do all kinds of roles and I am ready to do that provided people are ready to accept, and more importantly, producers are ready to take a chance of giving me those kinds of characters."
Delnaaz Irani With Rajeev Paul
Delnaaz Irani with Percy Karkaria
Delnaaz concludes by indirectly saying that she hasn't got her due from the industry."I have done such beautiful roles and put my heart and soul in each of them. People have appreciated my work. Whether the film or television show I did has worked or not, people have still remembered me and my characters. People still talk about Sweetu of Kal Ho Naa Ho even after 15 years. But I am also talking about films that didn't work--- like Paying Guests, Milenge Milenge, people remember my characters even in those,” she says.
Delnaaz ended her 14-year marriage with Rajeev Paul (he had given us a very exhaustive VIDEO interview talking about many things including his separation from Delnaaz (which you must see by clicking above) and is now said to be dating Percy Karkaria, with whom she featured in reality TV show, Power Couple.
Image Source : Indian Today, IMDB, YouTube/Revolutionnare Picture Productions
Replies Delnaaz, “I always believe that everything goes hand in hand, you need to do your networking plus you need good luck of being at the right place at the right time. But the phase that I am in now is just wrong timing. I don't blame luck or networking. 15 years ago, I was younger and so I played Preity Zinta's friend in Kal Ho Naa Ho (released in 2003) but today I cannot say that I want to play Alia Bhatt's friend. And if I say I am ready to play a mother, I would still look young. I am too old to play a friend and too young to play a mother and somewhere I am lost in between,” she says.
The actor says that the fact that people feel she can only do comedy has also restrained her options. “Since I have always been doing comic characters, people don't look beyond that. It’s very sad and I feel very dejected at times. I can give you an example of my recent film My Mother's Wedding. It's a very touching film revolving around the relationship between a mother and a dead son. I was the protagonist and nobody could have ever imagined that Delnaaz, who plays comic characters in every film and every show, will be able to do this character.
But a 23-year-old man came to me with his script saying he wants to direct it with me in the lead. Mind you, there were a lot of other actors he could've cast but probably he took a chance with a comic actor--- and I feel this way you can break an image. In the show Ek Deewana Tha, I played the character of a tantrik. It had all the shades. She was positive, negative, scary--- but there was nothing comic about the role. Like I said, as an actor, you should be ready to do all kinds of roles and I am ready to do that provided people are ready to accept, and more importantly, producers are ready to take a chance of giving me those kinds of characters."
Delnaaz Irani With Rajeev Paul
Delnaaz Irani with Percy Karkaria
Delnaaz concludes by indirectly saying that she hasn't got her due from the industry."I have done such beautiful roles and put my heart and soul in each of them. People have appreciated my work. Whether the film or television show I did has worked or not, people have still remembered me and my characters. People still talk about Sweetu of Kal Ho Naa Ho even after 15 years. But I am also talking about films that didn't work--- like Paying Guests, Milenge Milenge, people remember my characters even in those,” she says.
Delnaaz ended her 14-year marriage with Rajeev Paul (he had given us a very exhaustive VIDEO interview talking about many things including his separation from Delnaaz (which you must see by clicking above) and is now said to be dating Percy Karkaria, with whom she featured in reality TV show, Power Couple.
Image Source : Indian Today, IMDB, YouTube/Revolutionnare Picture Productions