EXCLUSIVE: The Vaccine War actress Raima Sen on casting couch: I feel it takes two hands to clap

Raima Sen made her comeback to Hindi films with Vivek Agnihotri’s The Vaccine War. She essayed the role of a journalist who opposes the vaccine drive. The film also stars Nana Patekar, Pallavi Joshi, and Anupam Kher in pivotal roles and released on 28th September. In an exclusive chat with Bollywood Bubble, Raima opened up about working with Vivek Agnihotri for The Vaccine War. She also shared her thoughts on nepotism, facing rejections, and being vocal about mental health and the casting couch. Excerpts:

Raima Sen on working in The Vaccine War

Talking about how she came on board, Raima told us, “When I met Vivek in Calcutta for the first time, he told me about The Vaccine War. He narrated me the story and in my first meeting, and everything was decided. What intrigued me was apart from celebrating the vaccine’s victory, it also sheds light on women’s empowerment. I am happy to make a comeback in Hindi film with such an impactful film.”

On Vivek Agnihotri choosing talent over stardom

Raima Sen further mentioned how Vivek Agnihotri chooses a powerful cast. “I am so happy that some directors still do. That’s his way of working. In all his films you see very powerful actors. His subjects are so strong he knows what he wants so he just needs a good actor to execute it”, said the actress.

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The actress on staying away from Hindi films

We also asked her the reason behind not doing many Hindi films to which she said, “I haven’t stayed away. Basically, I’ve done a lot of Hindi films but they haven’t been released. Hopefully, at some point, they will. I’ve been doing a lot of work during the lockdown in Bengal as I was stuck there. So I continued doing there.”

Raima Sen on prejudice about things being easy for star-kids

Raima spoke about her journey and explained why things are easy for the new breed of actors who are star kids. The Vaccine War actress shared, “It’s comparatively easy for the new crop of actors who have come in as they have either gone to film school or worked behind the scenes. They study the craft, and then they come into the movie. Back in the day, people were joining the films when they were teenage. The earlier you join the better. I happened to do my first film at the age of 11. Maybe if I had waited I would have also gone to a film school at some point. But those times were different.”

On dealing with rejections

We asked about facing rejections and did she ever thought of quitting the industry. She revealed, “I never thought I’d leave the industry. I have had my fair share of going for screen tests, getting rejected, being thrown out of films last minute overnight. That time I didn’t know how to handle it. But fortunately, I had great family support. So I never thought of quitting. Because I come from a film family, I think I could handle the ups and downs much better than a person who’s not come from the industry. “

Raima-Sen

Choose Filters

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1977

Crema

Ludwig

Moon

Willow

On being apprehensive about auditions and losing out on big films

In one of her interviews, The Vaccine War actress shared how she was scared of giving auditions and lost out on some really big films. Even now she is overcoming the fear. Talking about films she lost out, Raima said, “I don’t want to name those films. I find it very silly even when I read interviews about actresses and they name the film they lost out. I find it very stupid. But yes, I was very scared of audition. I either never used to go or leave it halfway. Today I have realized it’s importance. I am still overcoming the fear.”

Raima Sen on actresses opening up about topics like mental health and casting couch without hesitation

In today’s time, we have seen actresses being vocal about sensitive topics like mental health and the casting couch existing in the industry. We asked Raima her thoughts on how relevant it is for actresses to open up about such subjects without hesitation. To which she insisted, “I won’t speak about the casting couch and everything but mental health, I think it is very relevant, especially after the pandemic. I have addressed quite a few people. It’s important that they know you may be a celebrity and how you handle the ups and downs. About the casting couch, I don’t have any comments. I feel it takes two hands to clap. I don’t want to talk about this very sensitive topic in the context of Me Too and all of that as I don’t want to get into controversy about all that.”

Also Read:  The Vaccine War REVIEW: Vivek Agnihotri’s film is all about the war between scientists and media, not the virus