Aug 18, 2026 10:30am IST
Shefali Shah On 25 Years Of ‘Monsoon Wedding’: ‘It Was Relevant Then And Is Relevant Today’ (EXCLUSIVE)
In a career spanning over three decades, Shefali Shah has broken away from traditional typecasting by portraying complex, non-stereotypical female characters across mediums. In Mira Nair’s 2001 award-winning film “Monsoon Wedding,” Shah delivered a powerhouse performance as Ria Verma, the unmarried niece of the Verma family. Through her character, the film addresses heavy, unspoken undercurrents of familial trauma beneath the chaotic joy of a traditional Punjabi wedding.
How did the role of Ria in “Monsoon Wedding” come your way?
After “Satya,” I remember Mira Nair calling me and saying, ‘Nahi pata ke aapko Hindi aati hai ke nahi, (I don’t know whether you know Hindi)’ because she’d seen the film. She believed in the character I played, which was a huge compliment. She went on to tell me what the film was about, the story in brief, and the character of Ria.
Did you have an inkling about the kind of impact this film would have?
To be honest, I didn’t understand the magnitude of this film from that brief narration. Later, I met Mira Nair, and she told me some more about it, and of course, I was on board. It was a Mira Nair film, and it had such an amazing cast, and it sounded like a lot of fun where there would be this amazing bunch of actors in Delhi together and doing workshops with Naseer bhai (Naseeruddin Shah), etc. As we started going through the script, I realized the depth of what Ria had gone through, and more than being daunted by it, I was just flowing with her situation.
It must have been a challenging character to play considering how layered the script was.
Women going through what Ria did isn’t something unheard of. But the thing is, it’s never spoken about or shown as honestly as it was in “Monsoon Wedding.” I was too young to understand what the film would turn out to be. All the actors were in Delhi around 15-20 days before the shoot. So, we’d start the morning with yoga and then have a big breakfast that Mira would get from her home. Then, we would do workshops with Naseer bhai, and after lunch, we would go over every single scene with Mira. It was an amazing experience — one of my best shooting experiences.
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If you were to play Ria today, would you do it differently?
Mostly, actors look back at their work and say, ‘Oh, I could have played this differently.’ But I don’t know how. I didn’t have a craft or a skill. I still like to believe I don’t have the craft or the skill, and that everything I do is spontaneous and organic. But at that point, there was no understanding of anything beyond what I was doing. The free space we all got to explore the film, whether it was in performances ot the way it was shot, was amazing. It was an experience that is unparalleled. Can it be changed? Well, I wouldn’t want to touch it. The film is near-perfect in its imperfectness.
Ria represents all those women who have suffered abuse in silence. Do you think she eventually healed?
I think Ria’s found her voice then. And I think it was a closure of a kind. Of course, you may never completely heal from a trauma, but she has been able to point a finger at the culprit, and she had the support of her family, which was great. I think it was a sense of freedom that she got when she did that. She broke away from the shackles of the taboo of never saying what went wrong in the family. The taboo of feeling guilty for something you were not responsible for. She found her voice, and I think it kind of just freed her.
Today, 25 years after its release, how do you view ‘Monsoon Wedding’?
It’s a cult film and a brilliant film. It’s a film that was relevant then and it’s relevant today. It was probably the first film to talk about incestual abuse so openly. It became a voice for many people who have been through similar situations. It was a film that taught me a lot. I had the honor of working with Mira Nair, Naseer bhai, the cast, and Declan Quinn, who shot the film. It holds a very special place in my career, my life personally, and my filmography.
Which are the other characters you have played that are close to your heart?
Vartika Chaturvedi in “Delhi Crime” is another character that changed my career completely. It was a turning point in my career, for the way I approached roles, for the way people and the industry saw me. It truly is the game-changer for me.
What’s next for you?
I did a film for my husband, Vipul Shah, called “Hisaab,” which was shot last year, if I’m not mistaken. It’s a fun film with Jaideep Ahlawat and Abhishek Banerjee. I’m looking forward to its release. I have another film, which I think is quite crazy. I can’t talk about it. I have also shot a series, which again, I can’t talk about. Currently, I am reading a couple of scripts.
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