‘The industry doesn’t allow women to age gracefully’

Bollywood actress Lara Dutta who made her OTT debut with Disney+ Hotstar’s ‘Hundred’ is gearing up for her third OTT outing with ‘Kaun Banegi Shikharwati’. In a recent interview, the 43-year-old actress has opened up about how the film industry is not kind to female actors of her age, reports Hindustan Times.

Lara, who is all set to play the role of Rajkumari Devyani in ‘Kaun Banegi Shikharwati’, has talked about working in her 40s. “Honestly, as an actor, I feel age has liberated me. It’s finally cut me free from people’s expectations of wanting me to fill in the glamorous roles because I am the former Miss Universe. I feel coming in my 40s is the best time for me as an actor. Now, people are looking at my capabilities and talent. The kind of roles I am playing has depth. However, I’ll admit that the industry is not kind to you and it doesn’t allow women to age gracefully,” she said in an interview to Firstpost.

She further talked about how people comment on female actors who are older and still working. She said: “You have credible actors like Kajol, Madhuri (Dixit), Rani (Mukerji), and in that matter, even me, yet when they come on screen, people pass comments like now she has started looking old or She is fat now and at the end of the day, you can’t help it. Like everyone else, even we are ageing. I feel even the audience does not allow the liberty for actors to age gracefully, but I genuinely believe that actors who have come before us are rewriting roles for us. Look at Neena Gupta, Ratna Pathak Shah, they just inspire us. They are doing incredible work.”

While Lara’s OTT debut series ‘Hundred’ featured her as a cop, her 2021 show ‘Hiccups and Hookups’ saw her playing the role of a single mother navigating the world of dating.

The show will premiere on Zee5 on January 7. The show is directed and written by Gauravv K. Chawla.

Dutta made her debut with Andaaz (2003), which won her a Filmfare Award for Best Female Debut. She appeared in several commercial successes, including, ‘Jhoom Barabar Jhoom’ (2007), ‘Partner’ (2007), ‘Housefull’ (2010), and Don 2’ (2011). In 2021, she played Indira Gandhi in ‘Bell Bottom’.