Actress Sheena Chohan was amazed at the level of professionalism and discipline maintained by Kajol and Madhuri Dixit, two actresses she always looked up to, when she shared screen space with them in two big shows on Disney+ Hotstar and Netflix.
Recently, Sheena played Jasmin Lobo, a Christian girl from Bandra, in Suparn S Varma-helmed Disney+ Hotstar series The Trial, headlined by Kajol, and received plaudits for her performance in the series.
Sharing the story of how she came to grab the role, the actress said she had always been an admirer of Supan’s previous projects, including The Family Man, and had reached out to him for work. “I reached out to Suparn Varma with my work profile and expressed my interest in wanting to work with him. and appreciating the work that he had been doing. When the casting for The Trial had begun, Supan recommended my name to the casting director who got in touch with me. I auditioned for the part and I got it.”
Sheena said The Trial, which is the Indian adaptation of the American show The Good Wife, was made keeping the Indian audiences in mind. “Obviously, one is likely to compare the adaptation with the original. But I think the USP of The Trial is the thrill, excitement, and suspense that it brings to courtroom drama,” added the actress, who had previously played the PR Manager in Madhuri Dixit-starrer Netflix web series The Fame Game (2022).
Talking about her experience of working with stalwarts like Kajol and Madhuri Dixit in two big shows, Sheena said she came to know the true meaning of professionalism from them. “I observed that both Kajol and Madhuri absolutely love and enjoy their work. They always strive for excellence at the same time. And what I have learned from them was discipline, professionalism, the drive to be competent and excellent and to give your job your hundred per cent.”
Early on in her career, Sheena, who was born in Chandigarh but raised in Kolkata, worked with the late filmmaker Buddhadeb Dasgupta on two short films — Mukti and Patralekha based on Rabindranath Tagore’s poems. Recalling her experience of working with the renowned filmmaker, the actress said, “Buddhadeb Da was literally an institution and I got to learn a lot from him at the beginning of my career. He just told me to read Tagore’s books, which of course I grew up on because I am from Kolkata. I remember we shot on the beautiful baadis of North Kolkata. He felt that I was Hiranmayee (Doe-eyed). ‘I am choosing you because of your eyes,’ he had said.”
Reliving her Kolkata connection and theatre roots, Sheena gushed about the vibrant theatre scene of Kolkata. “The theatre scene in Kolkata is very big and it was very useful training for me as an actor. My first play was A Midsummer Night’s Dream and I went on to perform with some of the stalwarts of theatre from Kala Mandir to Birla Mandir to all the leading theatres and be a part of the productions. I went on to represent Kolkata at the National Theatre. This was only possible because I grew up in Kolkata.”
After The Trial, Sheena has multiple releases lined up for 2023, including a Hindi biopic of Sant Tukaram in which she plays the female lead opposite Marathi star Subodh Bhave. She will also be seen alongside Rajshri Deshpande and Bidita Bag in Bappaditya Bandopadhyay’s Justice. Sheena also has Taron Laxton’s international film Nomad releasing later this year.
