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In conversation with Sheen Dass
Sheen Dass. Does the name sound familiar? Of course, it does. I am referring to one of the popular faces on primetime Indian television. Sheen who currently stars on Star Plus’s Dadi Amma Dadi Amma Maan Jaao is back with her second Rajshri Productions show. In this interview not only do I discuss her career trajectory, but get an insight into her life which is often shadowed by the popularity of her fictional characters. Asking her how she began her journey in acting, Sheen responded, “So after doing my masters in journalism, I was working as a journalist in Headlines Today and then a Hindi political news magazine called Lokayat. It was during this time that I got the opportunity to work on Star Plus’s Airlines which opened the doors for more opportunities. Honestly, I never thought I would take the centre stage on a show but Rajshri selected me as the lead for Piya Albela which gave me the needed push in my career. Thereafter, I am now back with Rajshri again for Dadi Amma Dadi Amma Maan Jaao.” That is indeed a journey, isn’t it?
Sheen’s previous show Piya Albela ended in August 2018 after completing a healthy run of 1.5 years. What took her so long to make a comeback as a lead and more particularly, I was curious as to what inspired her to play the character of Anjali? To which Sheen responded, “Although I did do cameo roles in Papa By Chance and Shaadi Ke Siyaape, yes Dadi Amma Dadi Amma Maan Jaao was my comeback as a lead. Honestly, I couldn’t say no to Rajshri Productions. I knew that whatever role they were offering was good. Plus, the ensemble cast is what inspired me to play Anjali, it gave me a chance to work with excellent actors like Seema Biswas and Mohan Joshi. In terms of playing Anjali, what appealed to me was the realism. Anjali is a very real character and I love to play her.” Well, that makes complete sense now, doesn’t it?
Dadi Amma Dadi Amma Maan Jaao produced by Rajshri productions has given viewers the much-needed breath of fresh air on Indian television. I asked Sheen what has made this show different from the other shows currently on-air. To which she responded, “From the direction to the lighting and the camerawork, it is all entirely different to the shows that are currently in production. The story is heart-warming, as it deals with real-life issues. In terms of characterisation, no one is entirely black or white, it is how humans are in real life, complex.” As a viewer myself, I can certainly vouch for that.
Dadi Amma Dadi Amma Maan Jaao meets Rajshri’s ethos of wholesome family entertainment. The show as Sheen has mentioned, deals with real-life issues and the dynamics within the Indian family structure. In order to translate the story from paper to screen, the dynamics between the cast members have to be positive to convince the audience. Hence, I asked Sheen what her dynamics have been with her co-actors. To which she responded, “The cast of this ensemble show is amazing, I have found a younger sister in my co-actress Anagha Bhosale. Both Abhishek and Ankit are also lovely people to work with. Moreover, working with Seema ma’am and Mohan sir has helped me learn a lot about this profession. Even working with Shilpa Tulaskar ma’am has been wonderful, not only is she an amazing actress, but also an amazing person. In general, it is a lovely cast to work with and I am having such a great time.”
Like all Rajshri content, Dadi Amma Dadi Amma Maan Jaao is evident of high production values. In under 1 month of launch, I noticed that there have been four original soundtracks produced. Intrigued whether there will be an official release I asked Sheen the same, to which she responded, “Although they have been played on the show, I am not sure about any official release.” Well, we certainly hope the channel and production house release the OSTs soon.
For those that are unaware, Dadi Amma Dadi Amma Maan Jaao is one of the few finite series of Star Plus’s new programming strategy. Hence, I asked Sheen what kind of roles he would like to play in the future. To which Sheen responded, “Though there is a lot I want to explore, I am interested in playing a strong role in an action/thriller series. However, I will wait as to what the future holds.” Channels and PHs are you paying attention?
Given that Sheen has done a masters in journalism, I was curious to ask what the biggest hurdles facing television are. To which she responded, “Although the TV audience is still catering to the mainstream which is producing successful family dramas, I think one of the hurdles is that the youth are moving to the digital medium due to the rise of digital technology. Hence the TV industry is trying to find new ways to capture audiences.” Well, I certainly agree with that!
Besides work, I asked Sheen what she enjoys doing in her free time. To this, she responded, “I love spending time with my family and my dog. I also love to dance and practise Kathak.” Moreover, I asked Sheen if she could tell a fun fact about herself since my primary aim was to get an insight into her life beyond the TV screen. To this, she responded, “Even though I am a foodie, I eat minimal quantities, but multiple times a day. It’s funny because my friends always catch me eating and ask me why I never put on any weight. Another fun fact is that when I laugh loudly, it appears as if I’m crying so most people don’t know if I’m laughing or crying.” Well isn’t that funny indeed!
Finally, I asked Sheen if she would like to give any messages to her fans. To which Sheen responded, “Whatever I am is because of my fans and I will always be grateful to have them all. I am grateful to God for having you all in my life and I promise to do justice to my fans by being a good human and of course a good actor. Just be happy, stay healthy, keep loving. Thank you.”
Well there you go, that is Sheen Dass for you. Keep up with UrbanAsian.com and I shall be back with another article.
