Interview: People call me greedy, they say you have so much, now be patient – Sargun Mehta

Actress and producer Sargun Mehta, who studied at Kirori Mal College in Delhi and started her career with her first TV show ’12/24 Karol Bagh’, has spent more than a decade and a half in the industry. Now her show Badal Pe Paanv Hai is being seen on TV. During this special conversation, she spoke openly to us about greed, career, regional industry, relationships, memories of Delhi and many issues related to women.In a large section of Indian society, it is said that husband and wife should not be in the same profession, otherwise differences start arising between them. You and your husband, actor Ravi Dubey, both are in the same field and do many projects together. So what is the atmosphere like when you are working together, and if there is a dispute, how do you resolve it?
(Laughs) That probably used to happen because if a couple were doctors and the wife called the husband and asked him/her why he/she was taking so long to come home, the husband would say that he/she was doing an operation, then the wife would also say that we have also done many operations. I know which operation lasts for how many hours. So this is what society would say about such differences. As far as Ravi and I are concerned, this is a creative field, so we cannot agree on one thing. It is very common to not have a consensus in work. We also fight over such things. Then we keep quiet for a while and start doing other work for some time. After a while, one of us understands who was right.

But in the same society it is also said that husbands have no say in front of their wives? Really?
(laughing) So I need to tell this to my husband.

When you are not at work and are at home, who among the two is doing the most work? Because in most of the houses it is seen that the man comes and goes to rest on the bed after coming from the office, while the wife returns from work and gets busy with the household chores. So how is the work divided between the two of you at home?
Both of us work. We have recently refurbished our house. Usually women do things like curtains, interiors, cushions, but Ravi did them. he/she said I want these curtains, I want these cushions, I want that here. As far as cooking is concerned, neither of us cooks, so what can I say to him/her. But if needed, any of us can cook.

When a woman expresses her desire, many times people label it as greed. You have spent a long time in the industry, so has anyone ever tagged you as greedy?
People usually call me greedy. People think that you are already doing this, then why do you have to do that. You have so much, now be patient. But patience does not mean that I stop moving forward or expressing my desire. If I have the ability to move forward, then I cannot hide it behind patience. I can cross every stage with patience, that is what I do. But I am greedy to live a good life.

The stories on the small screen have always revolved around the relationship and conspiracies of the mother-in-law and daughter-in-law. But your show is different from this. Should it be assumed that Sargun Mehta does not like mother-in-law and daughter-in-law dramas?
(Laughs) No, it should not be assumed that Sargun likes all kinds of drama. I feel that showing only one form, one aspect of women can bore people. I feel that TV is such a medium through which you can inspire and entertain many people. If you can entertain them and also tell them something, it will be great. At the same time, I felt that since it is a new era, we should try our hand at some new stories. If people appreciate the new story, then many more people will work on new stories and if it is not appreciated, then (laughs) they will do the same saas bahu dramas.

Often it is said about women’s work that this is a boy’s field, this work does not suit girls or this work is not meant for girls. How true do you think this is, and which are those places where girls still have to face problems?
I don’t think there is any place where women cannot work. The President of our country is also a woman. Earlier people used to say that girls cannot work in fields like finance, accounts, so today our Finance Minister is also a woman. Women are at the forefront in finance. They manage the household finances in a way that even men cannot. Secondly, we dream very well, we can maintain good relations with people, we do not get angry very easily. We are ahead everywhere. Just because a gap has been created that in the backward era people have been suppressed a lot, it is not possible for every woman to come forward so soon.

What is the biggest concern in the regional film industry right now?
I think we have grown too much too quickly. The journey from making 5 films to making 60 films has happened too quickly. So now it is time for us to be cautious. People have shown a lot of faith in us, so we have to live up to their expectations. Now we have to give good cinema and not let people say that we made only two-three good films, it’s okay, now we won’t see it. I think that is the biggest fear, we should tread cautiously in that.

You come to Delhi. Your in-laws live here. So what do you think about Delhi? How is Delhi included in your memories?
My college was in Delhi, so I lived there for 5 years. My first show was shot in Karol Bagh, Delhi. I have very good memories from Delhi. Food is one of my best memories. People who know me will know that all my memories are related to food and friends. So I think that the most colorful days of my life were spent in college in Delhi. I have explored the whole of Delhi. I was in Delhi University 6 months ago, then I took my whole team to my canteen. I told them that my canteen’s rajma rice is very famous, so let’s eat. I still remember every single thing about the canteen, where we used to eat cheese Maggi, where we used to eat vada pav. So I am still connected to it.
Your show Badal Pe Paon Hai is a different kind of story. What is the real story behind making this show?I wanted to learn stock market trading for a very long time and all my friends, my father and brother and now my sister-in-law too, do stock trading. When I was learning about stocks, this idea came to my mind, and I started thinking about why I wanted to do this, and what kind of people are interested in stock market trading. That’s when the character of Bani came into existence. It is a completely different world. For a very long time, women have only done sewing or cooking because career options for women were less. So whatever skills they learned, they turned them into a career. But today’s generation has not been limited to a certain skill set. They have opened up new career paths for themselves. Women are doing everything today so why not trading in the stock market?