'I don't want to do saas-bahu type soaps': Sanjeeda Shiekh

Thursday, May 31, 2007

Post 'Kya Hoga Nimmo Ka', where she played a bubbly girl, we see Sanjeeda Sheikh in a more serious role in 'Kayamath'. She is happy not only with her present role, but also working for Ekta Kapoor and Balaji. Though she has plans to join movies, for the present she says television is her 70mm. We recently had a chat with Sanjeeda regarding the latest developments in her life. Here is the excerpt.

Your character has turned revengeful in 'Kayamath'. How comfortable are you playing your character now?
It is true that Ayesha has turned revengeful, but she is revengeful in a positive way. She has a cause behind it. The people in the family have mistreated her mother and thus she wants justice now. I think that the people are with me and I have no problem playing this character. I think what my character is doing is very much justified.

You had a bubbly, happy-go-lucky character in 'Kya Hoga Nimmo Ka'. This is a completely different character. Sanjeeda is like....
Sanjeeda is a mixture of both these characters, though she is not revengeful like Ayesha. She is a strong woman. Moreover, she is a bubbly happy-go-lucky type like Nimmo and is always up to some mischief.

Tell us about your choice of roles. Are you choosy?
Yes, I'm extremely choosy with the kind of roles that I want to do.

Then why Ayesha?
See, I got a lot of saas bahu offers, but I do not want to do them. When Ayesha's character was offered to me, I immediately knew that this was it. It is a young and a different kind of a role; something which I can identify with.

So what kind of roles do you look forward too?
I want to do different kinds of roles because I feel that if I keep doing the same kind of characters, I as well as the people watching me will surely get bored. I do not want such a thing to happen. Nimmo was a lead role, but I wish I get to do something different in future.

Do you think that one gets stereotyped once they hit in a particular kind of roles?
Yes, it does happen. I'm really happy that people still remember me as Nimmo, but I also want to build Ayesha's character. The offers that one gets afterwards are also similar to the pervious one.

How is your rapport with your co-stars, especially Shabbir who looks like a serious person?
A: I have got pretty good co-stars and Shabbir is a very good person in real life. I wish him all the best for his career in films. I have heard that he has done a brilliant job in Shootout...' and hope that he keeps up the good work.

What is your take on Balaji and Ekta Kapoor?
Everyone knows about Ekta, what more can I say about her. But she is extremely talented and I have full faith in her. When she offered me this role I closed my eyes and agreed to do it because she knows which actor fits into which role pretty well.

Are you enjoying television industry as a whole?
Yes, I'm enjoying every think that I'm doing and the love and respect that I'm getting here.

Have you thought of films yet?
Yes, I do want to get into films and I think all actors in television want to get into films and if they say that they do not want to, they would be lying. But I have not decided to get into films yet. It is 70mm for me here in television now.