Mandira Bedi stuck in stereotype, courtesy her short hair
Actor Mandira Bedi says that her short hair has got her caught in the stereotype game in the film industry. The actor plays a negative character in Saaho, featuring Prabhas and Shraddha Kapoor.
Mandira said, “I will leave for shooting in Abu Dhabi. I think people cannot imagine me in any other roles than that of a police officer or any negative character. I am stuck in stereotype, courtesy my short hair.” Mandira recently completed a Tamil film named Adanga they in which she is playing a police officer.
So, doesn’t she want to change her hairstyle for a variety of roles? “No, never. I did not think about growing my hair for that. It is a stereotype that needs to go. Why can’t a short-haired lady can play a lover, a mother or a wife? I am all of them.” Citing an incident, she said, “During the look test of my last released film Vodka Diaries in which I played a poet, a romantic role, I wore a sari and tried out beautiful long hair piece. But the director told me that they could not relate me to that long hair look. So they keep my look as it is.” Having started her career on television with the show Shanti, Mandira has mainly played the role of a liberal, strong-headed and progressive woman in shows like Aurat, CID, and 24.
While she made her debut in Bollywood with the iconic film Dilwale Dulhania Le Jayenge (1995), does she feel that her acting has taken backstage in her career and hosting shows has taken centre stage? “Well, this year I have a couple of acting assignments, and I am also travelling. So I do not see acting that way. I have also finished a film with Vivek Agnihotri, where I am playing a social worker. I think when I was hosting shows, people forgot that I am an actor too. But here I am, shooting for my films these days,” she says.
Why can’t a shorthaired lady can play a lover, a mother or a wife? I am all of them. MANDIRA BEDI ACTOR