Raima Sen’s versatility keeps her going

Raima Sen has carved a niche for herself and is associated with the critically acclaimed art house cinema. Her next release,Aparna Sen’s The Japanese Wife,reiterates the fact. For Sen,playing the role of Sandhya—a young widow and a single mother to an eight-year-old,has singularly been one of the most challenging but enriching experiences of her life. “When Aparna Sen told me that she wanted me to play the innocent character because I have a guileless face,I was very excited,” says Sen,who underwent an intensive workshop of ten days to prepare herself for the role.

Right from cutting vegetables on a chopping board to washing saris and doing the household chores,Sen underwent a series of regimes. “I even learnt to wear the sari all by myself,” she smiles,adding,“I was taught how to smile because according to Aparna,a mature woman who has a kid,smiles differently.” All this needed to be done because the maturity of her character had to come across. “Aparna Sen is very particular about getting her characters right and she tries to keep things real,which works for her films,” says Sen of her director.

While Sen has been known for her roles in Godmother,Chokher Bali,Parineeta and Daman,she strongly contradicts the fact that she could be typecast. “I agree I have done a lot of serious roles,but every now and then,I also do mainstream cinema. I have done films like Honeymoon Travels Pvt. Ltd. and Manorama Six Feet Under.” She further adds,“Under any circumstances,I would always choose an Aparna Sen film over a commercial film.”

What also works in Sen’s favour is her affinity towards Bengali cinema. “My next film is a Bengali film with Rituparno Ghosh,” she says,for which she is currently shooting in Kerala. Back in Bollywood,Sen has Vinay Shukla’s Mirch and Ghosh’s Sunglass. And for the first time,she will also be working with her sister Riya Sen in another of Ghosh’s Bengali films. “In this one I play the sophisticated model and Riya the simple girl. We are kind of switching roles here.” Only on reel,we hope.