Feb 07, 2026 12:57pm IST
Shefali Shah: ‘If I’m Going To Be Working Like A Donkey, I Won’t Be Able To Deliver Like A Horse’ (EXCLUSIVE)
One of the best changes brought about by streaming platforms in Indian entertainment is how roles are being written for women, especially senior actresses. Shefali Shah who was a household name as Savi from "Hasratein" (1996-1999) saw a resurgence in her popularity as the Netflix show "Delhi Crime" created an iconic reel cop in DCP Vartika Chaturvedi. The Netflix show has made her an idol for younger female actors in India. Reflecting on this, Shefali Shah says it is scary but she feels a deep sense of gratitude. The actor believes her career in Bollywood would have been a busier one if she had met people like Richie Mehta ("Delhi Crime’s" creator) back in the day. However, she feels blessed to have the luxury to take on work she truly believes in. Variety India sat down with her for a free-wheeling chat where she spoke about adulation, artistic integrity and how movies are part of dinner conversations. Excerpts…
Do you feel it was truly the OTT space that did complete justice to your talent? Did you ever feel disappointed that Bollywood filmmakers were not tapping into your true potential?
I do feel that I did not get those roles, but honestly, in the conventional big blockbuster films, there weren't even parts that were so exciting for women. For the longest time it was about the actress or the heroine being like an accessory to the film. She was not a full fledged character. So, but would I have wanted more? Of course. I wish I had been offered some more stuff.
Does it disapoint you, the fact that hardly any top filmmaker thought of writing a female cop’s character for a mainstream Bollywood project for so many years?
True. And even if they had thought of it, they wouldn't have probably thought of casting me. So, I was so happy. Thank God Richie Mehta had this script. He thought I had to be a part of it, and it happened. And forget me, a lot of top actresses actually say that it has become like the benchmark of, “Oh, finally, there are women who are in their mid-age and they're playing leads, which is phenomenal.”
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Given that you did not have an example from Bollywood to refer to…did you seek inspiration from some performance done by an actor in the West for Delhi Crime 3?
I remember asking Richie if Vartika (the protagonist of Delhi Crime 3) is kind of a character that Olivia Colman plays in "Broadchurch", or the one Gillian Anderson had played in "The Fall". I gave him a couple of references. I asked if she has the stoic held back quality of Robin Wright from "House of Cards". And he said, no, she's Vartika. This is what I've written. Now, you create her, and that is what was.
You have always spoken about taking on work that has a certain level of artistic integrity. But do you think because you had that ‘ideal’, you had to reject so many offers?
Yes, sadly, yes. And I could have probably been very, very rich had I said yes to all those projects. And, I probably could have been working 24 hours, 365 days a year. But there were choices I made of things I wanted to do, and things I didn't want to do. It wasn't always an easy choice, because it could mean that I would get a project once a year or once in two years. But in retrospect, I wish I was offered more.
When you take on a project, how important is it for you to have a team that completely aligns with your vision of a project?
Well, there will always be discussions, conversations and even arguments, but the basics of the film, the show, if me and my director don't align, there is no way we can do it together. A film or a show is about everyone working towards one goal. If our energies are scattered, how are we going to be able to create something which is complete in its true form? So, it's very important that you agree on the basics of main matters. You will need to have the same ideologies, kind of work systems and son on. And then, of course, then there are conversations and discussions.
When young actors talk about OTT series and its best actors, they often cite you as a prime example. Does that overwhelm you?
I remember, the day the show dropped, it was 1:30 pm. I had kept myself busy so I could control the jitters. They had meetings and interviews lined up, and I was walking to one interview, and Medha, my manager, she was walking with me, and I kept on asking, what is the reaction to the show? And she said, “Okay, let me just read three four, you know, comments like, reviews to you.” And I could not stop crying. I just could not stop crying. I was so relieved and so grateful.
Are there some young actors in India whom you feel have huge untapped potential just waiting to be discovered by the director?
In fact, all the young girls in Delhi Crime…all the young actresses. They were all so good, and I really hope that people recognize their potential and give them their due in the industry.
Gujarati theatre is full of superlative actors. How much has your roots contributed to making you the actor that you are?
Well, you know, it's very difficult to kind of say what and how it has influenced my work. But I'm sure seeing stalwarts at their work created an impression. I remember my time with Bhakti Maasi (Bhakti Barve) and Ahmed (Ahmed Khan). I did a play with her (Bhakti Barve), watching her on stage, or being directed by Shailesh Dave or Shafi Inamdar, or watching other co actors. You do learn. And these were all seniors, I was very young when I joined theatre, so you obviously learn stuff. I wouldn't be able to quantify it right now.
At home, do you enjoy discussing movies with your family?
We do that all the time.
You also work as an artist....What is the one takeaway from your hobby that has benefitted you as an actor?
Well, it did something for me exactly when I did not have work, which is, it took care of my mental well being. It gave me an outlet for my creative frustration. I was doing something that was creative, which was a way of expression and I was loving it. So it really made up for all the work that I wasn't getting.
You said your husband has (humorously) instructed your team to get you out of a set or else you will end up spending 24 hrs there? So, do you aim to take on projects that can keep you motivated to that level so that passion for acting beats everything.
Absolutely. And I don't take on a project unless I am that motivated. But I also realize that if I'm going to be working like a donkey, I won't be able to deliver like a horse. So, you know, I need to keep some time to breathe, to rest, to be able to go the next day and deliver the best. But there are situations, there are films, there are shows, there are days when everything is going wrong and they need that extra time. Or there's no place to even go to the loo, and they've just built a tent in the wilderness. You are fine with these things as it's a part of creating a project. But I don't say yes to something unless I am in love with the story.
So what is the longest shift that you have done for a show or film?
We (Vipul Amrutlal Shah and Shefali Shah) had done a Gujarati film together. We shot for some, like, some ridiculous 30 hours at a go. Oh my god. It was like, I don't even know what we were thinking. Actually, I should go and catch him.
But did you resent it?
No. I just went along with the flow of the shoot. Then, when I was shooting for "Three Of Us", there used to be very long hours, because we used to wake up at six am, or three o’clock in the morning. Then, we would drive one and a half to two hours and reach the location, get ready and catch the morning sunrise because Avinash (Avinash Arun) wanted to shoot in the morning light. We would return late in the evening. Also, afternoons in Konkan. So you can imagine the heat and the exhaustion. But I was so in love with that whole project that I had to do it. I wanted to do it. I did it.
If you were not an actor, in which other role do you see yourself in this film industry?
I could be a writer.... definitely not an active producer. I could be a director may be.
If today you were offered the role of Akshay Kumar’s (older than you) mother or Ranveer Singh’s ( merely a decade younger than you) mom, would you say no? Knowing that better roles will come to you.
I will always hear the script. Okay, I will hear the script. I will see first if the script excites me, and then see what is the vision the director has in mind, you know, if you're casting me, what is the vision you have in mind? Is it just to play somebody's mother? Is it a character which is so powerful that it will stay with you. Then, yes. Of course, you think of, how is it going to work? Is it visually going to work, etc. But I wouldn't say no at the drop of a hat, but I would not say yes either at the drop of a hat, even if I was out of work.
"Hasratein" was one of the most well-written shows of its time on TV. Taking on such a complicated character at an early stage of your career...how do you reflect on it now?
The only thing I had to face was that I played a mother at a young age (Laughs). I was 20, and I played someone who was 30-35, so that was the problem, but it was a character that was loved and appreciated. I mean, till date, there are people who come to me and say, “We’ ve seen you since Savi and we love your growth. We root for you all the time.”
So what kind of content do you like to watch? Do you watch reality shows?
Okay, I have not watched a single reality show. I watch documentaries. I watch a lot of docu-dramas. I love thrillers, crime thrillers, spy thrillers. I love that genre. I do not enjoy horror. I like light- hearted family shows and family dramas a lot.
Who are the actors in India and abroad whose body of work never ceases to amaze you?
Wow, Mr. Bachchan, Fahadh Faasil, Mammooty, Mohanlal, Tabu Vidya (Balan). I mean, Alia (Bhatt), I mean, she's so young, and she's just done such phenomenal work. So there are so many you look and say, Wow, this is amazing. But I'm a very greedy actor. I still want more.
After the success of OTT shows in India, many Bollywood filmmakers say audiences' tastes have changed, and one cannot predict which film will succeed? Do you also agree with this notion?
Honestly, I don't understand numbers. I genuinely don't, I don't understand the business of box office numbers, collections, and all that stuff. Now, if anything, the audiences only have become more open to different kinds of stories, which is great and thank God for it. Big films that have a big star cast, they are a culture in our country. Going to a theatre and watching it with your family and friends on Diwali is a tradition that will always continue. It is like cricket.
But at least with the OTT platform, there are more stories being told. There are such interesting stories being told. So I don't think it's curbing anything. In fact, if anything, they are helping us grow creatively.
If you do a movie marathon at home, how many films can you watch back to back?
We've done four films. Four films, yeah,
Which movie have you watched multiple times?
Okay, there isn't any movie that I keep going back to and watching again and again. There is so much content coming in all the time. We try to watch everything at the earliest. And then you don't want to revisit it for some time, because there is something else to watch. Actually, I don't remember re-watching anything, except I think "Adolescence".
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