Ridhima Pandit reflects on her journey as she returns to television after five years with Ufff… Yeh Love Hai Mushkil

Ridhima Pandit. Pics/Instagram

One could never expect her to play the vamp, but Ridhima Pandit is thrilled that people see potential in her to take on varied roles. After becoming a household name with shows like Bahu Hamari Rajnikant (2016) and Khatron Ke Khiladi 9 (2019), she disappeared from television for five years. The actor was then seen in Netflix's Sikandar Ka Muqaddar (2024). Pandit is now back on TV with Ufff… Yeh Love Hai Mushkil as Shabir Ahluwalia's ex-wife in the popular daily soap. In conversation with mid-day, she talks about her character Lata, the lack of a godfather in the industry, and why she feels she is yet to get her due.

Excerpts from the interview.

Having not seen you on television for so long, many thought you had shifted focus to other mediums. Is that true?
No, I'm not moving away from any medium. I just want to keep working. The notion in the industry that if you do TV, then you cannot take up other things, is untrue. My logic is that I am an actor and I need a place to perform. Why should I disrespect a medium or use the term "move away" from a medium that has given me everything? Today, I am known because of TV. So, I respect it, value it, and it has called me back. I am again entering people's hearts, homes, and televisions every night. What else do I want?

So why have you been away from television for so long?
Honestly, I want to do concepts that stand out. People still remember me from Bahu Hamari Rajnikant, Dance Champions, and Khatron Ke Khiladi 9. So, my logic is that I take up projects, especially on television, that are distinct. I have no regrets about missing out on any shows. I feel I may be a poor judge of character in people, but I am wise when it comes to picking work or letting go of work. I have done things without any help, so sometimes I have felt helpless and directionless. The long gap that I took by choice worked for my mental health. I do realise that not doing anything at all is also not good, but I did not want to take up something that hampered me in any way. In a way, I am very glad to join this show with the very people who launched me on TV.

How does it feel to enter a show midway?
I actually did not see it as entering midway. The character is so interesting that it felt like it was purely written for me. I have never played a negative character. So, kudos to the makers for imagining their sweet little robot, whom they created, being able to play this havoc-creating character called Lata in the show. I think it is logical to enter at any point and create havoc. So, that is what I am doing.

What was your reaction to the role of Lata?
While I am thrilled, my grandmother is the most upset because she is so nice, just like a child. She liked me only as the sweet robot. She feels I don't look like a vamp. The character is very narcissistic; she is beautiful on the outside and extremely ugly on the inside. What made her that ugly is what is unravelling in the show. Taking this up was challenging because sometimes I don't relate to the dialogues I speak, but I am loving it. From eyebrow-raising to having an effect on the other characters, it is a powerful role.

Do you feel you are getting your due?
I don't think so. A lot of people repeatedly get work, despite being troublesome and unprofessional. So, why am I not getting those opportunities? I believe the industry operates a lot on luck. Getting my first project and it becoming a superhit, me becoming a household name - where others took years, it was instant for me. I believe this wait period is my struggle.

Up Next
Ridhima Pandit will make her Marathi debut with ‘Premachi Goshta 2'. She also recently shot an advertisement with Ajay Devgn.

Story from the set
Closest to Shabir Ahluwalia, who plays advocate Yug on the show, Ridhima Pandit shares that the actor is one of her favourites on the set. "Shabir often cooks for all of us on the set. He is such a lovely person."