I Was Offered Heeramandi – Reena Roy

Yesteryears’ screen queen Reena Roy is all set for a comeback.

“Now that my daughter is grown up and doesn’t need me to be around constantly,I feel I could do some work again,” says Reena who in the 1970s and 80s featured in a slew of superhits like Kalicharan, Jaise Ko Taisa, Nagin , Apnapan and Aasha.

“It was a wonderful innings. I slogged round-the-clock, sometimes shooting for 2-3 film simultaneously, Luckily for me, most of my films turned out to be hits. But then I took a break. I was exhausted , and I needed time for my daughter,” confesses one of the ruling queens of her era.

Now Reena wants to work again. She is getting offers on the OTT.

“I was offered the wonderful Sanjay Leela Bhansali’s series Heeramandi on Netflix. But the role lacked substance. I just had to perform a Mujra, and exit. Where did my character come from? Why was she in a kotha? How did she get there? There was no back story for my character. I regretfully had to say no,although I’d love to work with Mr Bhansali,” says Reena.

She recalls playing a tawaif years ago. “In Rocky which was Sanjay Dutt’s debut I had a small but well-etched role as a tawaif. There was a flashback with the villain Ranjeet to justify how I get there. Although the role was small it left an impact.I don’t mind doing just a few scenes. But my character should not be there just for the heck of it.”