"I Was Going Through Trauma": Susmita Mukherjee On 4-Year Financial Struggle That Changed Her

Veteran Indian actress, theatre director and author Susmita Mukherjee has been around for a long time. But, as is often the case these days, social media has turned its spotlight on her ever since the gutsy actor spoke about the financial struggles and Rs 1 crore debt she battled, with no safety net in sight.

The actor does not hold back as she opens her heart. She lets the floodgates open as she speaks about her most difficult phase and the emotional turmoil she went through. It has only made her stronger today; it has also changed her perspective on fame and money, as she succinctly puts it.

One video that went viral was the one in which she shared that she had to take on C-grade films just to get out of a mountain of financial debt. She held nothing back as she spoke about how hurt she was when someone questioned her choice of "bad" films at one point. It made her revisit the painful memories of the decisions she had to make then that were unavoidable.

Susmita Mukherjee, who was last seen in Nayyi Navelli as the sassy, modern and quirky dadi, is in no way subdued by archaic traditionalism. As always, the actor's playful banter and comic timing are spot on.

In this freewheeling chat with NDTV, she talks about the courage it took to open up about her challenging times. She also shares fun memories from her iconic 1990s Captain Cook Salt commercial on Doordarshan and her beloved character, Kitty, from Karamchand. Susmita Mukherjee was a "viral" moment even before it was a thing.

Q: You are so upfront and open about life's ups and downs-about loss and gratitude, and whatever has happened to you. Where did you get that courage?

I got it at the point in my life when I was suffering the most. I was doing a project that was not going anywhere. I was very constrained for dates. I was not doing theatre, which is my first love. I was not able to set the timings. I did not use my dates. I was going through some trauma. I was caught up and committed, but they were not using my dates. At that point, I felt that artists are supposed to be givers, not takers. We are supposed to be able to influence people. I have grown-up sons. I have a son who is married. It is time for me to be able to express myself-not to think about how much money I have, how much time I have, what my make-up is or what my entourage is. That part should be over for people of my generation.

Q: When you talk about the financial struggles you have been through, and then you come to a stage where things are getting better and you are doing better, does your perception of money change?

On the contrary. Because I went through that phase-there was a phase of four years which was very bad - money has become a complete game changer for me. I look at money as energy. Everyone says it is energy, but I look at it as something that is not only for me. It is supposed to be shared. I am not giving it to anyone in particular, and I am not giving it to everyone either. What I have realised now is that the universe is really malleable to your intention. It is clear to me. When I had my last thousand rupees, I used to think, "It will come. It is not my job. I have not done anything bad. It will come."

Q: Coming to your iconic role-Kitty from Karamchand. Do you think we could get a spin-off of your amazing character? 

It was 40 years ago. It started in 1986. I was Kitty 40 years ago. How can I be Kitty now, 40 years later, when I am a grandmother? It is not important. When time moves, you move with it. You become a different version of yourself. They tried to do something a second time, but it did not work out. They had a spin-off with another actor. I am not interested. I have to move on. They tried something else too, but I do not know.

Q. Your advertisement-the Captain Cook salt advertisement. Did you imagine that a 60-second salt commercial would become one of your most unforgettable performances?

Ram Madhvani was the director. I was six months pregnant with my first child. I was about to become a mother for the first time. There was so much excitement. There was so much conversation around it.

Q. Do you recall celebrities and actors becoming mothers being discussed as much as it is today? Do you recall the challenges you faced?

I was shooting until my ninth month. I was shooting a show called Tara. Four days after that, I delivered. Tara was the serial. They put me in a big chair with a big blanket over me. I have two memories of Tara. One was this: I was nine months pregnant with my first child. When I discovered I was pregnant, I was three months along. I had to toss a baby in the show. I was playing Anita Seth, Alok Nath's wife-a very bad character. I was pregnant for the first time, three or four months in, full of hormones and full of motherhood. And I had to toss a baby. I was baffled. The director said, "You have to toss this baby. Don't worry, the baby will land in good hands." I said, "How can that be? There are people there." I did the shot. I am a trained actress, but I broke down and started crying. I said, "I am so sorry. I will not do it again."

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When my children were born, I used to take the baby with me. My staff used to rush around because we were famous. They used to bring the baby, and I would feed my elder son. He would sit on the set. There were rooms-not fancy ones, but rooms. We used to sleep there and take the baby with us. But it was very sweet. We did not show our stomachs. It was our time. But we worked. People call it a big deal now, but it was normal for us. We worked and took the baby along. We did not sensationalise it. In our time, there was no such thing. We were very happy mothers and very practical mothers. I had to run my life, take care of the baby and manage my career. We did not celebrate it in that way.

Q: For an actor like you, who has done everything-parallel cinema, family dramas, horror, sitcoms and more-which genre brought out the best actor in you? 

I think emotional roles. What I enjoy is anything that brings out emotion in me. Comedy is also something that comes naturally to me. It does not take much effort. Emotion, however, has to come from within. You have to go into your shadows. You have to see the character you are playing and how it resonates with you-what within you has been triggered by that character.

There is a difference between performance and acting. Many actors, including me, have been very performative. We can perform emotional scenes. But today, actors do not perform. They will have a straight face and say, "We were coming today. We do not know what the next person will say." So, you have to ask the director what they want, because it is a technical medium. You have to either perform your emotions or feel them. That is the actor's job, and that is the genre.

Q: Do young actors come to you a lot for advice when they are working on a particular project?

Sometimes they do. But today's young actors are also very, very confident. They come with some training and they know their craft. They just want to come and work. So they will say, "It does not happen this much. It has not happened this much with me." But it is more collaborative now: "Let's do it this way." And I will say, "Yes, that is a very good idea." But you know, it was not like this before. We used to go and ask. I have worked with so many seniors. There was not much social media then, so there was a bit of a glamour around it.

From the unforgettable blind grandmother Mangala, more popularly Dadi ji, in the slapstick comedy Golmaal: Fun Unlimited (2006), to the witty Kitty in the cult classic Karamchand (1985) - could be overlooked. Susmita Mukherjee's range is undeniable, to say the least, and it's quite an interesting journey she has had both on and off the camera.

ALSO READ | Rs 1 Crore Debt, No Safety Net: How The Industry Abandoned Susmita Mukherjee