~*~*~Maayka Articles Archive~*~*~ - Page 7

"I will leave Maayka at any cost", thunders Shilpa

There have been rumours floating around on Shilpa Shinde's unhappiness with the script of Maayka, but now it is official and straight from the horse's mouth. "I am determined this time and will leave Maayka at any cost. It's just a matter of 15-20 days more before I quit the show," says the visibly angry actress. Shilpa is upset at the way her character is shaping up in the show and says, "I have told the creative team serveral times about this but it seems they have taken me for granted. I don't want to be another Tulsi, Parvati or Kumkum. I want to do something creative and productive which will satisfy my artistic mind."

Shilpa is also immensely upset at the way Waaris ended. Reportedly Zee stopped the show saying that it was proving to be too expensive for them to run. "It is not a joke! When a respectable channel like Zee starts somethig like Waaris with actors like Aashish Vidyarthi, Iqbal Khan and me they should know that it will be an expensive production. If you know you do not have the financial prowess to pull it through, why start it?"

Shilpa seems to be fuming with anger while talking about this issue. "That way even Maayka is an expensive show with stars like Parmeet Sethi, Upasana Singh, Aroona Irani (later she was replaced by Shoma Anand), Soma Anand and they are all experienced actors and highly paid. I believe if you want to run a successful show you can do it."

While on the topic, she also treads on the controversial incident involving Yuvraaj Malhotra, though not directly. "In every relationship there is ego and you have to handle that carefully and cleverly." Is she ponting to the Yuvraj Malhotra incident in Waaris? "I don't have any clues about what he has done with the production staff but he was very co-opeartive and comfortable with his co-stars on the set. Waaris was a male dominated show but my character Gayatri was an aggressive one and I tried to do full justice to that," says Shilpa. "There was time when I had worked almost 18 hours daily for both the shows. You can ask my co-stars that I was never late on set. But what is it that I am getting in return? I have crossed five years in ths industry and I do expect more than what I am getting now, right? I don't think the channel should have the sole right of deciding when a show will end, actors should have their say too," says an angry Shilpa.

"I have informed the producer of Maayka and its upto them whether they want to end my character or replace me with someone else. I am ok with both the eventualities," says Shilpa. What if they ask Shilpa to stay back? "They have already told me that but I will be back only if Waaris comes back." Shilpa has decided to take it easy for a few days now as she believes something good will happen in her career soon.

The inhuman schedules of the television industry have been under criticism from all quarters. Reams of newsprint have been spent on talking about how it leads to actors falling ill, poor quality of shows, technicians collapsing on sets. But what, perhaps, all of us seem to have missed is one positive aspect of this otherwise inhuman practice (working 18 hours every day) ? the fact that it sprung many relationships in real life. Even if you do not count the couples in the industry, there are many people from the industry who have become best of friends, largely because of the time they spent together on the sets. Be it Sarah Khan and Parul Chauhan, Hiten Tejwani and Yash Tonk, Daljeet Kaur and Neha Bamb, Amit Verma and Mazhar Sayeed, Jay Bhanushali, Jatin and Ali Merchant, the song that all of them seem to be singing is Yeh dosti hum nahin chodenge. We spoke to a few of them to find out more about friendship in an otherwise cut-throat industry.

"I met Neha during my first serial ? Kaisa Yeh Pyar Hai ? where I was doing a cameo role. Neha was the lead in that serial," remembers Daljeet Kaur. "I was no one when we met each other. Slowly we became very close to each other and Neha helped me a lot in my career. I am really in awe of her 'take it or leave it' attitude. She is just what you see her ? it is very rare to come across someone as straightforward as her." But is there something that she dislikes in Neha? Daljeet smiles before responding, "Sometimes she becomes very childish and just wants things her way. It does become difficult to meet up to her demands!" However, she has always been there for Daljeet whenever required. "There have been so many instances when we needed each other for emotional support and have stayed over at her or my place. Just a few days back, she had come over to my place to stay over. Unfortunately I got delayed because of Nach Baliye shooting and she went back. But our understanding is good enough so we do not mind such instances."

Neha concurs and says, "I have very few friends in this industry and Daljeet is one of them. She has already spent few years in this industry but has no hangups whatsoever, within or outside the sets." She remembers one incident which made her realise how much Daljeet cared for her. "My car broke down in the middle of the night and I did not know what to do. When I called her, she drove down to the spot, picked me up and took me back to her place and made me stay over. She could have jolly well asked me to leave once the car was repaired, but she insisted that I stay back. This may be a small incident but it made me realise how much she cares for me," recollects Neha.

Does being from the same industry hamper their friendship? What about professional rivalry? "I strongly believe that each person's success or failure is there in his or her destiny. So there is no scope for professional rivalry in our relation," says Daljeet. Adds Neha, "There is no way such rivalry can come between our friendships. Plus this industry is so big that it will have work for everyone!"