EXCLUSIVE: Renuka Shahane on being considered ‘snobbish’ for rejecting roles: How could you say no…

In a conversation with Pinkvilla, Renuka Shahane said that some people thought she was snobbish as she rejected certain roles in films. Read on!

By Lubna Khan

Updated on Mar 03, 2023 | 02:41 PM IST | 319.2K

EXCLUSIVE: Renuka Shahane on being considered ‘snobbish’ for rejecting roles: How could you say no…

Actress Renuka Shahane is known for a number of roles in her television shows, as well as movies. While the popular TV show Surabhi made her a household name, she was then seen in the film Hum Aapke Hain Koun, starring Salman Khan and Madhuri Dixit in the lead roles. Renuka Shahane played the role of Pooja Chaudhary in the movie. In an interaction with Pinkvilla for the first episode of our annual segment Woman Up season 4, Renuka Shahane revealed that she was offered a lot of ‘behen’ and ‘bhabhi’ roles post-Hum Aapke Hain Koun. She said that while her role in Hum Aapke Hain Koun was great, the other roles offered to her post that, had no character or substance. She turned down such film roles, and instead played some amazing roles on television. However, she revealed that many considered her snobbish for rejecting those roles.

Renuka Shahane on being considered ‘snobbish’

While speaking to Pinkvilla, Renuka Shahane said that her journey in the film industry actually began after Hum Aapke Hain Koun. “I was offered a lot of behen, bhabhi roles which I didn't take up because I felt that Pooja Chaudhary in Hum Aapke Hain Kaun had a lot to do, while those bhabhis and those sisters were just somebody's sister, somebody's bhabhi. There was no character,” said Renuka. She added that she was offered roles like these regularly. "That's exactly why I did so much television, because what amazing roles I got to play on television. So why would I look at films?” said Renuka. The variety that she was offered as the main lead in television shows was tremendous.

Renuka Shahane was asked if she was viewed as being rude when she rejected so many roles in films. Renuka replied, “Wo rudeness ki tarah to dekhte hain. Some people used to think at that time that I'm very snobbish because I would say no to them. 'How could you say no such a big producer or such a big director?' And I'm like I am saying no to this character. This character doesn't suit me or this setup doesn't suit me so what do I do? And at that time there was no time also because once I started working on television, then again sometimes I used to do three or four serials at a time which kept me busy throughout the month. Even though they were weeklies. They were 10 days per serial I had to allot and then that was the end of the month,” shared Renuka.