Rashami Desai is back on television, but the actor says her journey back to the small screen came after years of stepping away, working on herself and questioning how the industry saw her. From being labelled an “overexposed face” to facing comments about her appearance, Desai says she has had to deal with judgements that often overshadowed her acting skills.
In a conversation with SCREEN, the actor opened up about her three-to-four-year break from television, online trolling and the way women are often judged in the entertainment industry. She has now returned with Star Plus show ‘Sayonee’, but says she was not willing to accept a project unless she believed in it.
Why Rashami Desai stayed away from television
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Desai said she deliberately stepped back from work for three to four years. During this period, she acted in a Gujarati film and the ZEE5 film ‘Hisaab Barabar’, but did not take up many projects despite receiving television offers.
“I didn’t work a lot; I didn’t feel like it,” she told SCREEN, explaining that she could not connect with the offers coming her way or was simply not ready for them at the time.
According to the actor, television demands a different level of commitment from performers. Unlike films, where actors may have more time to prepare between projects, television often requires them to live with a character for an extended period.
“I just felt that if I wasn’t convinced of something, I wouldn’t convince my audience,” she said.
‘Someone is paying to attack me’
While Desai has faced criticism during her career, she said she has changed the way she deals with online comments. Earlier, she would read them and sometimes even enjoy the attention. However, she has stopped checking comments over the past three-and-a-half months.
The actor believes some online attacks are paid for, saying, “Someone is paying to attack me.”
Desai also pointed out that online trolling can have serious consequences for people who struggle to cope with constant abuse.
“There needs to be a limit. You may not get affected, but a lot of people have committed suicide due to trolling,” she said.
‘Women are way more than objects in a frame’
Desai also spoke about feeling underestimated because she is a woman. She criticised the tendency to present female actors mainly for their looks rather than recognising their abilities.
“A lot of projects happen where women are only used as objects in a frame. I found that very wrong; we are way more than that,” she said.
She argued that a woman’s role should not be limited to looking “voluptuous, sexy, gorgeous, glamorous”. According to Desai, women who work hard in the industry deserve recognition for their talent.
The actor said she believes she is a good performer but has not always received the platform she needs. Instead, she feels people have often reduced her identity to that of a television actor.
Recalling the criticism she faced, Desai said people commented on her weight rather than focusing on her work. She also recalled being told that her career was over and that she had become an “overexposed face”.
- Rashami Desai
