Raghubir Yadav: The Art of Being

Those who admire Pradhanji’s rooted existence in Prime Video’s Panchayat remember him most from Mungerilal ke Haseen Sapne which aired on Doordarshan in 1989. It was only 13 episodes but left an impact on almost everyone who watched it. But then Pradhanji, played by Raghubir Yadav, acted in another 13-episode series next year, which he prefers. This series was Mullah Nasruddin. Yadav, a graduate of the National School of Drama (NSD) in Delhi and part of the repertory for 10 years, broke through spectacularly in Pradip Krishen’s Massey Sahib in 1985, where he played a Christian clerk Francis Massey, who works for an English officer. Massey marries the tribal girl Saila, who is played by Arundhati Roy before she won a Booker Prize. It doesn’t end well. Yadav is one of the few actors in the industry who have not been calcified or corrupted, staying true to his art, his “junoon” (passion). “This acting word is very dangerous. One cannot act, one has to just be,” he says. It’s a form of self preservation, he says, because if he had “commercialised” his craft, he would have been typecast as a comedian. “I don’t want to be part of this bechnewala [selling] culture,” he adds. Yadav has had a series of powerful roles on screen, from Bhura, the poultry farmer, in Lagaan: Once Upon a Time in India (2001) to the manipulative brother in Peepli Live (2010). But Prime Video’s Panchayat has returned him to everyone’s hearts. Yadav, who worked for Parsi Theatre, travelling all over India for `2.50 a day at the beginning of his career, says he is not tempted by money. He values the three years he spent with the great Ebrahim Alkazi at NSD because it taught him the value of stagecraft, from make-up to carpentry, from music to lighting. He remembers missing only one class during those years, and that too on Diwali. He narrates the story as if it was yesterday: “I was washing my clothes and I remember Alkazi saab summoned me, and told me, ‘Even if you are dying, you will have to come and do it in front of me’,” he says. That is how important theatre was to him. Yadav loves Panchayat because it allows him to work with the same dedication and passion. And it is to this that audiences respond.

How to Wait

Sharmajee ki Beti has been ready for release for over three years. Meanwhile, one of its stars Saiyami Kher got to play a cricketer in R Balki’s Ghoomer, other girl power movies and series were released, and Sharmajee ki Beti’s director Tahira Kashyap Khurrana wrote several more scripts. “I’ve had many meltdowns, many showdowns, I’ve prayed, I’ve shown faith in myself. But before sleeping every day, I’ve told myself, there is light at the end of the tunnel, just keep your head down and keep working,” says Khurrana of the film that has finally aired on Prime Video. Shot during Covid-19 in 32 days, with Chandigarh standing in for Mumbai, the movie tells the story of women across age groups, from a homemaker at odds with her daughter, to a Mumbai newbie at odds with the entire city, to a young woman cricketer at odds with the world. “Every day on set was a joy. I was this person with a creepy grin plastered over my face,” says the first-time feature director. “It breaks many clichés,” Khurrana says of the movie, and shines a light on those who don’t necessarily want to save the world, just celebrate its simplicity.

The Success Trap

She won more than 15 awards as best female actor for her fine work as Neelam Krishnamoorthy in the intense and often harrowing Trial by Fire on Netflix in 2023. Yet Rajshri Deshpande says people can’t see beyond her character now. “When they meet me in person, they say ‘Oh, we never thought you were beautiful’,” she says. However, she adds, “That’s what acting is. People have to understand that as artists, we follow our priorities. But no one wants to take a risk.” Despite all the noise over streaming and the opportunities it has created, she says the reality is that very few roles of good quality are written for women. “There is praise, but there is no work on the ground, which makes one think where is the money going? Where are the toilers for junior artists, where is equal pay?” Deshpande is soon going to be seen in Hema, a short film about an immigrant woman’s experience in the US, which is going to premiere at the Indian Film Festival of Los Angeles, between June 27-30. Directed by Ritvik Dhavale, it is a tribute to his mother and Deshpande as usual is as subtle as she is powerful in the role.

BollywoodcinemaRaghubir YadavRajshri DeshpandeTahira Kashyap Khurrana