I can’t butter anyone up, I have quality to offer: Richa Chadha

Actor Richa Chadha has consciously tried to break through the clutter of repetitive work — even at the cost of taking risks. She says she has navigated the industry’s highs and lows by walking on uncharted, creative territories without trying to “butter” people for work.

“I have been on the fringes of this industry, I don’t think they understand me. I am always looked at like the awkward smile GIF that exists on the internet. They feel, ‘Oh, she can say what she wants to, she looks really b***sy, the things she is saying are empathetic but the way she is saying could seem borderline rude’. I struggle with people understanding me. But I don’t care. I can’t butter anyone up. I have quality to offer,” Chadha asserts.

The 34-year-old adds the projects she chose in her career are today’s norms in the industry. “People made fun of Inside Edge when it came out in 2017. They said it was a demotion, that my career was over. They were condescending towards the web series format... The kind of work I have championed all my life, now everyone is doing it,” she explains.

The actor shares that she has always attempted to push the boundary with her work, even if sometimes it hasn’t been accepted with the same intention she had. Citing the example of her 2019 courtroom drama Section 375, Chadha says the film was meant to question the law and not throw women under the bus, which some had criticised it for. “It was a subversive take... It wasn’t talking about how women’s characters are at fault. I get attacked for [my films] left, right and centre,” she concludes.