Ulka Gupta: It is not necessary that the hero should only be like Hrithik Roshan, Nawazuddin can also be like him/her

Skin color has been made an insult

These fairness cream companies play with our insecurities. They have ruined my childhood. If powder or cream has to be imposed because maybe today no one will tease you or I will look good, then it means how much it must have hurt someone’s heart. Such companies have made skin color an abuse. I do not want to support them. No matter how much money they give.

The hero can be not just Hrithik Roshan, he/she can also be like Nawazuddin Siddiqui

The racial discrimination that is being created in us and the new generation should be eradicated through education. Children should also be given spiritual education so that they understand that looks are just an outer cover. They should be explained that there are regions in our country with different climates. Here, some are fair and some are dark. It should not be that if there is a hero, he/she should be just like Hrithik Roshan (as a symbol). he/she can also be like Vicky Kaushal, Nawazuddin Siddiqui, Manoj Tiwari, Manoj Bajpayee. There was a time in Hollywood when Denzel Washington was the only hero of black origin. Then gradually many other big actors including Will Smith came. The superiority lies within the person, not in the outer looks.

I have been facing racism since the age of seven

Actually, we Indians are very innocent. The whites came and said that you are inferior to us and divided us. They also left behind the ideology that we are dusky. Now this ideology has become deep rooted that the one who is fair is superior. It affects girls the most. I have been facing color discrimination since the age of seven. Should a person be superior by ability, thoughts and contribution or by the outer color of the skin? Earlier when I used to go for auditions, it was written there that ‘Only fair kids for this audition’. I travelled for many hours and you will not cast me because my color is different. It may be that there was such a need, but it was decided that for the up market, fair kids will be used and poor village kids will be dark or dusky. I was shaken by these things. Papa used to say that if you are a good actress, then one day or the other you will get cast somewhere. Because of this, I used to give a lot of auditions. That journey was not easy. I am not afraid of rejection because I have faced it from such a young age that it does not matter now.

Then every historical show started getting offered to me.

After Jhansi Ki Rani, I started getting offers for all historical shows. How will it work if I get every historical role? Papa and I thought that if I become Razia Sultan, Ahilyabai, Jhalkari Bai, Razia, then who is Jhansi Ki Rani? So I decided not to do them. If I am imprinted in the minds of the audience as Jhansi Ki Rani, then it is a good thing. How will it work if Spiderman becomes Superman and Superman becomes Batman? Everyone has a different nature, only then will you be able to become immortal for one character.

I could not find time for theatre between studies and acting

My father used to do theatre earlier. he/she says that if I do theatre, I will become a better actress. However, due to my busy schedule, I have not been able to do theatre. I started giving auditions at the age of seven. I got fame at the age of 11-12. To reach here, I had to struggle a lot from a young age. You have to give at least six months to go to theatre. You have to go there every day, you have to be disciplined. Till now, I did not get time for anything else between studies and acting. I am still studying. I get calls for work from anywhere at any time. I just want to become a full-fledged actress. I get to learn a little bit from my father’s theatre friends. Apart from this, a person becomes a good actor by learning. To be successful in any work, it is very important to form a belief and take a resolution.

Everyone asks whether the decision to play the role of a mother was a hasty one

Everyone asks me if you will become a stereotype by playing the role of a mother in ‘Main Hoon Saath Tere’. This only happens in our country. People say that this decision is not a hasty one. Smita Patil played the role of an old woman. When she did not avoid such roles in her youth, why should I think so? My idols are Julia Roberts and Meryl Streem. Such things never come to their mind. They look at every character differently.

I am getting experience even before becoming a mother: Ulka

Ulka Gupta says that despite not being a mother, I look at getting the role of a mother in two ways. First, I chose a role slightly different from my age. This is cult breaking because heroines do not accept such roles. The difficult thing was how to reflect that motherly love in me. Well, this is a natural thing for every woman. When we look at Krishna, that maternal love awakens. Second thing is that every mother becomes a mother for the first time in life. She dreams that if she has a son or daughter, she will do this, she will do that. Here I have got the role of a child’s mother. Somewhere it feels that I am getting the experience of motherly love even before becoming a mother. When I become a mother, it will be easier for me. I will become more evolved.

Variety of shows is evolving

TV has a tier 2 and tier 3 audience. People think that a face of our age and a story should come so that it feels like us. If you look at Anupama, women of that age connect a lot with the show. People must also be thinking that how many young people should be seen. Representation is very important. In our country, there are very few stories for single mothers. To bring some excitement in their lives, to increase their interest, shows are now being made on such stories. If you see, there are all kinds of shows on TV. Just like we like variety of food, in the same way variety of shows are also developing on TV. This should also happen because enough is enough, only the same old fight between mother-in-law and daughter-in-law. Now people are also getting educated, so change is bound to come. We should be proud of this. TV has also changed along with the country.