I am alive, kicking and happy; Shweta Basu Prasad tells Tellychakkar.com

When we touched base with Shweta Basu Prasad post her return home, she was a bit cautious about what our line of interview would be. The actress who was caught in an alleged prostitution bust up has already denied the statement that all this while was falsely attribute to her personal self something that both vilified her and also made her a sympathetic victim at the same time. But as it now emerges, Shweta may not have written or dictated the 'rogue' statement at all. Shweta says she was in the hotel to attend an award ceremony when the raid happened. Since the case is sub judice, Shweta for her own good cannot talk about it openly in the media and she would go no more and reveal than what she has already said in a print interview. What the bubbly young girl is ready to talk about is her documentary on classical music called Roots, acting career and what lies ahead of life here on. We were happy to lend a listening ear. Excerpts from the interview. Tell us about Roots? Roots is a documentary I started working on in 2011 when I was 20. After Iqbal, I didn't take up any acting assignments because my parents were keen that I complete my studies and lead a normal life away from the limelight. I was pursuing mass media in journalism and being a true blue media student, I was into photography and freelance journalism. It is during this time that the idea of making a documentary on classical music struck me. I am also trained in sitar because as a Bengali child it is customary to learn at least one musical form and I have grown up with cinema, art, music and literature around me all the time. So it became all the more relevant for me to study and showcase why classical music is lagging behind as compared to popular music. As organic as it may be, I ended up discovering a lot many things like taxes that are imposed on instrument makers. Why did it take you so long to complete this documentary? Firstly, I was handling this project all alone. Since it was heritage music that I was working on my research had to be dedicated and spot on. I have interviewed music maestros like Amjad Ali Khan saab, Pandit Shiv Kumar Sharmaji, Pandit Hari Prasad Chaurasiaji, Shubha Mudgal, A R Rahman, Amit Trivedi, more contemporary musicians like Vishal Bhardwaj and thinkers like Gulzar. I have also interviewed journalists, visited music schools, travelled to Miraj in Maharashtra where Tanpura is made. All these things took a lot of time. How was your interaction with A R Rahman? Meeting Rahman sir was exciting and there is an interesting story behind it. I was praying to meet A R Rahman for my project and was trying to track his manager's number. Call it a God sent opportunity, I met him at a dargah. Here, I narrated my concept about the documentary and to my surprise he said that he too had been thinking of something on similar lines. He then gave me his word to be a part of my documentary and he stayed true to his it for which I am extremely grateful to him. What do you intend to achieve with Roots? I want this documentary to be seen and understood by kids and parents. The main intention is to evoke a thought and respect for classical music. Everyone should understand the importance of classical music. Parents should take their kids to concerts and classical music should be made a part of school syllabus. If that happens, musicians who want to be teachers can also find suitable employment. You were seen as the next acting sensation after Makdee. Iqbal too did very well. You must have been flooded with offers. But you just disappeared. What went wrong? Nothing went wrong. When I was 18, I did a couple of south films which did well too. Yes, I was flooded with offers but then films started overlapping with my studies. So I didn't pursue it actively. Also, I live with very strict parents. My father after Iqbal wanted me to take up academics while my mother thought I could make a good filmmaker, writer or designer. However, I found acting to be my calling. That's why I took up mass media and during my study period I visited film festivals and have been a part of short film clubs as well. Not many know that I acted in a Hindi short film, INT. CAFE - NIGHT with Naseeruddin Shah, Shernaz Patel and Naveen Kasturia. My high school best friend Adhiraj Bose directed it and we have shown the movie to directors like Abhishek Choubey, Anurag Kashyap and Vikramaditya Motwane. They all appreciated my performance and gave me a positive feedback. But what about acting in commercial movies that Vikramaditya and Anurag make? Didn't you ever approach them for roles? In 2008, I auditioned for a Pradeep Sarkar movie for YRF which never got made. In fact, Pradeep da himself auditioned me. In 2011, I auditioned for a Vikramaditya Motwane project. When I was 19, Anurag Kashyap asked me to join him as an AD (Assistant Director). He said, 'Don't sit at home. You need to stay connected to the film world. Come to office and work with us.' But I had my 12th board exams then and I had to decline the offer. But these guys have always been my strength. Vikramaditya and his mother Deepa aunty have known me for long. In fact, in August 2014, after the editing of Roots got over and just when I was getting back in shape, I also auditioned for a Dharma film for which I was called by casting director Nandini Vishwanath. Director Sonam Nair (Gippy fame) took my audition. So I was here auditioning as and when possible and busy with my documentary. No doors were closed for me at all. A lot of Bollywood celebrities including Deepika Padukone supported you. What do you have to say? Firstly, let me say this again. I never made any statement in the first place saying that all doors were closed or other things that have been falsely attributed as my statement. The entire portrayal of the statement was wrong. It was much ado about nothing to begin with. But I am really grateful that Deepika and other celebrities supported me. You need such people at such times. If you say you didn't make that statement, who did it then? I am trying to track that person who attributed that quote to me. It's a serious offence. But that's all that I want to talk about right now. I want time to speak for itself. I am not going to waste my words on it. Now that you are back, have you received any film offers yet? Hansal Mehta has approached me but there is nothing official about it. I also want to say that this shouldn't land as a bad example where people who get mired in controversies end up getting projects. I want to audition for the part and earn the project on my merit because I have always earned projects on merit and not otherwise. Have you heard anything yet from Vishal Bhardwaj? I have had a few text exchanges with him after reaching home. He texted me that he is happy to see me back home. Any acting offers from him? Nothing on the work front yet. I would love to work with Vishal again. He is a great filmmaker and I consider myself fortunate for having made my debut with his film. Has this incident left a bitter taste in your mouth about south film industry? Not at all. What wrong has South industry done? I love all my fans down south. If I ever do a Telugu movie, it will be for my fans in Andhra and Telengana. Are you happy today? I am alive, kicking and happy. I am not a sorry bitch and let people think that I am depressed. I love my life and whatever turn it takes, it is always for the good. So I am looking forward to the good.