There is wisdom in Soni Razdan’s performances. She doesn’t chase drama, and that shines through in Brown, where she plays the fiercely protective mother, Janice Brown. But for Razdan, the role wasn’t just another character on paper; it echoed her own journey as a mother, including learning to understand mental health alongside her daughter, Shaheen Bhatt.
In a conversation with Filmfare, the veteran actor opens up about building Janice from the script, why she believes every character deserves a rich backstory, how Bollywood has transformed over the decades, and why, after a lifetime in cinema, she’s no longer chasing fame.
What are your earliest memories of discussing the nuances of Janice Brown with the makers?
I use my script as a launchpad. Of course, there were discussions to be had. When I read the script, I understood the character. I wanted to be sure of the mother that I was playing. The director’s vision was important, but the script was my launchpad. When you are playing a character from a specific community, you have the nuances of that community thrown in. It becomes part of the fabric of that character, and that’s something actors can use. Otherwise, it becomes generic. A scantily written character and a well-written character are very different. I keep in mind my character’s background, community and backstory while performing. Every character is also related and interlinked. It doesn’t have to be a blood relation, but they are all interconnected. I love fleshed-out characters, even if the role is small.
What are some of the most well-written characters that you have ever played?
There was a film called Such a Long Journey, based on the book by Rohinton Mistry. And it’s no surprise that when you play a character from a book, there is a lot to go by. The writer has already written so much. That’s one project I can think of where I played Dilnavaz Noble. I have also done a show with Vir Das, which hasn’t been released yet, where I’m playing this crazy character. That role is so well-written. It’s set in Goa. My character in Saaransh was also very well-written. It was one of my first films.
While shooting Brown, did you begin to draw from your own experiences as a mother?
Always, at every moment. The character I was playing demanded it. There was no fakeness to it. The scenes with my daughter (Karisma Kapoor) were very natural. We all want our kids to be able to survive in the world. That’s Janice’s thought process too. She is concerned about her slightly wavering daughter, who seems to have gone off the rails emotionally and mentally. She is worried about her, and I relate to that.
I can’t say my children (Alia Bhatt and Shaheen Bhatt) have gone off the rails, but that’s what mothers do. They want their kids to be alright. As mothers, we raise our children so that they can take care of themselves later in life. As a matter of fact, you never stop worrying. Also, you don’t have to tell your daughter every two minutes to eat this or drink that. But for a very long time, I did. I could relate to those scenes with my daughters.
Your daughter Shaheen Bhatt has been open about vulnerability and mental health. Did that honesty begin at home?
We all had to learn. We didn’t know anything. That’s the case in most households. A lot may have changed today, but I feel people are still surprisingly ignorant about certain situations and illnesses that are actually quite common. Many people suffer from depression.
I had no previous experience with it. So, it became a voyage of discovery for both the parent and the child. And it’s not easy. But Shaheen is a bright and smart girl. I’m happy and proud that she excels in everything she does. Of course, none of us is at the top of our game all the time. You don’t have to be depressed to go through difficult phases. Everybody experiences sadness at some point in life.
But there’s a difference between clinical depression and ordinary sadness. We are surprisingly uneducated about those differences. And I’m not ashamed to admit that I was too. It wasn’t my fault. You don’t know until you’re faced with such a situation. Then you have to figure out how to deal with it.
You have worked through cinema’s transition from single-screen theatres to streaming platforms. What has changed the most for actors, and what has surprisingly remained the same?
Everything has changed in terms of the kind of roles you get and the films being made. Thanks to streaming platforms, the roles being written are much more adventurous for every age group. They don’t follow stereotypical formulas anymore. As a result, actors are having a blast playing interesting characters.
The nitty-gritty of production has also changed. We get bound scripts now. Earlier, directors would narrate the story and we’d have to imagine everything. Every time you heard a narration, you thought you were the most important person in the film, even if you only had three scenes. It’s quite funny.
Sometimes, you would hear the story entirely from your character’s perspective, then arrive on set and realise you only had three lines. Many scenes were also written on set. You wouldn’t receive your scenes in advance. But that’s not the best way to perform. You need to understand your scenes, learn them, chew on them, swallow them and digest them. If you’re still thinking about your lines while performing, you can’t really act.
That’s why performances in the old days were often more stilted. Today, performances are much more visceral and natural. There is room for actors to experiment and build nuances into their characters because they have time to work through the script. Production has also become far more organised. We receive proper schedules with scenes clearly mentioned. Earlier, we would simply arrive on set without knowing what we were shooting.
Interestingly, what hasn’t changed is that cinema, or any business involving content creation, still requires passion and love for the craft. If you’re not excited about what you’re making, it will show in the final product. If you don’t believe in it, the audience will know.
Earlier, filmmakers were driven almost entirely by passion. They would spend two months shooting in Kashmir without thinking twice. Things are a little different now. There are many more processes in place, but at its heart, filmmaking is still driven by someone’s passion.
When you look back at your early work, what do you think the younger Soni Razdan was chasing that today’s Soni Razdan no longer worries about?
She was chasing success. I wanted to make it as an actor. Nobody knew who I was. I was an unknown entity. I wanted to prove that I could act, if nothing else. I wanted recognition. To a large extent, I’ve received that recognition. It’s still not enough, to be honest. It could always be more. But I’m no longer chasing success. I’m chasing good work.
What would be your advice for the newer generation of actors?
The new generation doesn’t need my advice. They are sorted. They’re already good at what they do. But if I had to say one thing, it would be this: be real. There’s nothing more important than that.
You have been observed as an actress, a mother and a wife. But at this stage of your life, what is something that people still haven’t seen or noticed about you?
Alia Bhatt and Sharvari are leaving no stone unturned in promoting their upcoming film, Alpha. The duo is currently in Jaipur as part of the film’s promotional tour. Before heading to the city, they surprised fans by going live on Instagram and teasing an unreleased song from the film.
