I am not a big fan of celebrity autobiographies and no offence meant, it바카라s just that I find them tedious, since they tend to lean towards self-justification, even glorification whilst a few have been polite accounts of struggles and triumph or just emotive trawls of life in the spotlight.
The constant interest in the private lives of celebrities breeds a familiarity that is persistently fuelled with 바카라according to sources revelations and rumors바카라, by tabloids. It바카라s no surprise that many take pen and paper to set the record straight through their memoirs.
Neena Gupta known for her candour, has often made headlines 바카라 be it her relationship with West Indies Cricketer Vivian Richards, for her decision to having a child out of wedlock, to her relationships, and being a single mother.
바카라Behanji and Shameless바카라, is how I have been described all my life, the actor writes in her autobiography 바카라Sach Kahun Toh바카라 adding, that the book is her life바카라s journey not narrated by the media but by Neena Gupta herself. She picks on the fact that many would have picked this book to read up about her relationships and the controversies that have created her media image for years.
In an interview with me, Neena Gupta said, 바카라It was nowhere therapeutic to write this book. I think it was the need for me to tell my story the way I am, not the way people have told my story over the years. I was sick and tired of that, mujhe laga marne se phele ek baar to batadun , the ones who have been writing about me for years, is all rubbish. I only got the confidence to speak my truth after Badhai Ho, because it바카라s when you are successful, that people listen to you바카라.
An extremely readable book, the first part which chronicles her humble beginnings in West Delhi is pure nostalgia. She recounts how her strict mother insisted she go to an all-girls college and her emphasis on studies. But on the other hand, she also made sure that Neena had the most fashionable clothes to wear.
Her hasty first marriage to her then-boyfriend which was her logic to her mother바카라s, 바카라you cannot go out with him unless you get married바카라, was her way of carving her freedom, which she describes as a 바카라 foolish choice바카라, in retrospect.
Though the marriage didn바카라t last a year, Neena Gupta admits there were no regrets, as it brought her closer to her passion, acting. From the National School of Drama to landing in Bombay to make it to the movies, she was determined in her path to success.
However, her life바카라s narrative was not how she had planned. Relegated to playing parts which didn바카라t amount to much in her filmography, the curse of being the 바카라 Lallu Ladki바카라 seemed to haunt her, with no one giving her a chance to prove her talent바카라
바카라See, it was always Shabana Azmi, Smita Patil, and Deepti Naval who were seen as the face of art-house cinema, and even though Shyam Benegal, Govind Nahiliani knew me, but they never saw me as a commercially viable actor바카라, she candidly admits.
With assignments few and far in between, she calls out the disparities and inequalities in mainstream Bollywood. She narrates how a top director propositioned her and calls out the existence of the casting couch. Bur Neena maintains, it is an individual바카라s choice. As she shares her stories of being treated as a non-entity to humiliation, never does she gravitate towards portraying herself as a victim or a struggler, rather she takes it on the chin.
바카라I didn바카라t know how to conduct myself in the industry. I thought everyone was a friend. Nobody is your friend. They are doing their job and you have to do yours. I couldn바카라t learn how to talk to people. I was hesitant to persuade people constantly thinking it would push them away more and they바카라ll end up not talking to me. I was very shy and didn바카라t know the rules of the business. So, I made plenty of mistakes, and have been made a fool of because I didn바카라t know any better, I am a 바카라 ghusudu바카라. You should know when to exit.
As she constantly berates herself for not knowing her self-worth, playing small parts in the hope of snagging a big role, she asks the reader to not make the same mistakes she made personally.
As she chronicles her journey between films and television, she candidly talks about her heartbreaks, being cheated on by her long-standing boyfriend to her fiancé calling off their wedding just days before the ceremony. She casually mentions how to date she has never found an answer to why her wedding was called off but does not hold a grudge.
In the much-awaited chapter 바카라 How I Met Vivian바카라, she clearly states, 바카라I am keeping the details to a bare minimum, a lot has been said and written about this chapter of my life. To guard the privacy of the people concerned, she also subtly lets the message out that this is just one incident and not the story of her life and to stop portraying her as the 바카라radical face or feminism.바카라
She recounts how her friend Satish Kaushik even offered to marry her if she felt burdened with bringing a child all by herself. She also mentions that Om Puri, Gulzar, and many others supported her through her pregnancy, even as a senior journalist betrayed her trust and made her private life public. Neena Gupta says, 바카라I had the support of my father, my friends but everyone is not in the same boat, I may not have gone ahead and had a child alone if I was not confident about my support systems and my life in no way can be an example to others to lead theirs. I had no husband, Masaba바카라s father didn바카라t live with us, but I had my father who helped me through the years, and I am grateful for all I have, there is no reason to lament.
Part three of the book chronicles her life as a working single parent, as mainstream Hindi cinema continued to treat her as a junior artiste. From being asked to wear a padded bra for Choli Ke Peeche Kya Hai to being shouted at by David Dhawan on the sets of Eena Meena Deeka, to dancing at functions and being denied her remuneration.
In the later part of the book she briefly talks about meeting and marrying her current husband Vivek Mehra, and the iconic social media post where she stated 바카라 바카라Am A Good Actor Looking For Work바카라, what follows is an elaborate rundown of her filmography, from Badhai Ho to Sardar Ka Grandson, Panchayat to Masaba Masaba, as Neena Gupta finally got her due becoming one of the sought after actors at age 60.
Neena candidly admits that writing about her late brother was the toughest chapter and her regret at not getting to know her mother.
The book바카라s appeal is in the simplicity of its narrative. Unraveling scenes from her life with the candour she is known for in real. Sach Kahun Toh as I suggested to her would make an exciting film, to celebrate the legacy of a woman who has owned her life for what it is.
(The author is executive editor, Good Times. She lives on coffee, loves dogs, travel and K dramas. Views expressed are personal and do not necessarily reflect those of Outlook Magazine.)
