When we can love four-legged animals, why do we discriminate against fellow human beings, i.e. eunuchs?
This question had always plagued talented Anand Goradia, who is playing a negative eunuch in the Colors show, Shakti.
“Agreed, some eunuchs might be bad, but then there are men and women also, who do worse stuff. Yet we don’t stigmatize their entire sex, right? Also, you need to appreciate the fact that many of them are forced to do wrong stuff, for society does not give them their due. So, we come down to the age-old question– what came first, the chicken or the egg?”
“Something similar has happened to my character Maharani as well. At first, he had a normal childhood; but once it became known that he was not like others, he was ostracized and thrown out of his house. Hence, he decided to get back at the world.”
Here, Anand accepts that film and TV show makers also generally only show eunuchs to be bad. “But we need to doff our hats to Mahesh Bhatt, who made Tamanna, way back in 1998. Paresh Rawal Sir did a superb job as Tikku. Since eunuchs have both male and female characteristics, he was able to give both, a father’s and a mother’s love to Tamanna (Pooja Bhatt). Normally, if you are a single parent, the child does miss the other parent’s s*x attributes.”
Talking about essaying the role of Maharani, Anand says, “It is a real challenge, for I have never tried anything like this before. I have taken inspiration from several Bollywood and Hollywood characters, but at the end of the day, it is very important to bring our personal take to the table if you want the character to become epic.”
Anand, who has been around for years, says his best is yet to come, while his worst is history. “My journey is like a slow train stopping at every station. But no regrets, for I have learnt from my every character. Be it the cocky public prosecutor in Adaalat, who loses every case to K D Pathak, yet always has a smile on his face. Lawyers, adversarial in court, become good friends when meeting each other in the bar room.”
“Likewise, when I did Na Aana Iss Des Laado, I become aware of Haryanvi folks, who have very derogatory views about women. This was quite a revelation to me, being a city-based guy.”
You are indeed a great performer, Anand.