I don’t look for opportunities, opportunities look for me’: Smriti Irani
NEW DELHI : Get ready for a dose of nostalgia and entertainment as ‘Kyunki Saas Bhi Kabhi Bahu Thi’ returns to television with the reboot season. Just days away from its grand premiere, the much-awaited show is all set to make a splash with iconic faces returning and also introducing a new generation of stars. Smriti Irani is returning to her role of Tulsi Virani opposite Amar Upadhyay’s Mihir and new faces will join them to play the younger generation of the Virani family.
In the second season of ‘Kyunki Saas Bhi Kabhi Bahu Thi’, the iconic jodi of ‘Mihir’ and ‘Tulsi’ will be seen on screen once again. Amar Upadhyay and Smriti Irani, who played these roles respectively, are returning to reprise their characters in the show. With a limited run of around 150 episodes, the reboot offers a mix of nostalgia and new-age drama and if rumours are true, veteran actor Jeetendra is also expected to make a special appearance. After a hiatus of several years from television, Smriti Irani is returning to reprise her famous role as Tulsi Virani, which is a powerful comeback that fans were eagerly waiting for.
BJP leader and former Union Minister Smriti Irani made several revelations about her acting and political career. When Smriti Irani was asked what happened when she got a call from Delhi while she was shooting for a film with Rishi Kapoor in Shimla, she said: ‘I was in Shimla. I was working in a film with Rishi Kapoor sahab, when I got a call early in the morning that you have to come to Delhi, you have to take oath in the afternoon. So my last moment, when I faced the camera, was with late Rishi Kapoor ji.’ Smriti Irani was making this comment in Aapki Adalat.
When asked if Rishi Kapoor had given you any advice, Smriti Irani recalled and said, “He said don’t even blink, don’t even waste time. The rest of the people who were in the crew expressed happiness over this and also said pack your bags quickly and go to Delhi because there is no greater service and no greater fortune than serving the nation.”
Will such an opportunity come again that you will get a call and then you will be seen taking oath from the set of “Kyunki…” back in Delhi? Smriti Irani said, “I don’t look for opportunities. Opportunities look for me, so I don’t know which opportunity will find me and when. I know this much that when the opportunity comes looking for me, you will neither be disappointed nor ashamed. I will not fall below the benchmark of the talent with which I am known in politics and media today. I promise this much.” In response to a question, Smriti Irani was reminded that megastar Amitabh Bachchan had called politics a ‘cesspool’ and that Rajesh Khanna too had quit politics in frustration. Smriti Irani replied: ‘I did not join politics. I am connected to national politics. Because when you join politics, you look for something for yourself. When you join national politics, you look for new heights, new achievements for the nation. This is the difference between doing things for yourself and doing things for others. Many people do things for themselves. To live for others, to have a sense of service towards others, very few people get such good fortune and opportunity. I believe that if you get this opportunity, you should give your all in it. The biggest achievement of my life is that I joined BJP as Smriti Irani and now I have become Didi.’
How was your experience of working with Vinod Khanna? Smriti Irani said, ‘A very capable actor, experienced, but the kind of faith he had in politics, the kind of inclination he had, was commendable. He was a very disciplined and no-nonsense person. So working with that person and surviving his no-nonsense attitude was considered an honor in itself. Like Vinod Khanna ji, Hema ji also contributed. Even today Hema ji’s contribution is there.
Shatru Sir is now on the other side (in Trinamool), but he was one of the people who gave me the first award in my life. I remember if any old clip comes out, then I am sitting in it as a judge and the person on whom I am giving judgment or commenting is today the Chief Minister of Punjab (Bhagwant Mann).’ Bhagwant Mann… Shatru ji’s sense of humor is amazing? Smriti Irani says, ‘It is better if I comment less on him. But yes, all of them were legends. I also worked with Dutt Sahab. Even though he was in Congress, he made his own contribution. And I think you can say the same about Amit ji, because everyone says that he was sad. His personality is such that if swords are drawn, he wants to be a peacemaker. And we are from that generation that if the sword is drawn, it does not go back into the sheath until it bleeds. So this is a difference of perspective and experience.’
‘Because Smriti was once thin’ When Smriti Irani was shown some old pictures of her modeling days and told that the pictures are really stunning, Smriti Irani replied: ‘She is not stunning, but…’ Smriti Irani said ‘Because Smriti was also once thin. These are Miss India pictures. Looking at me today, it doesn’t seem so, but I have been a Miss India finalist.’
