'I am not talking to Raja' : Shweta Tiwari

. Popular TV actor Shweta Tiwari takes time out with family to Goa following the recent strike. Ann A catches up with her.

She has been a RJ, she has made her niche in the telly-world, she has done ads, and films too. That’s Shweta Tiwari, who loves experimenting. Shweta Tiwari’s kitty seems to be overflowing with work, and she seems to love it. “Yes. I am doing a reality show Jalwa 4 2 Ka 1 on 9x and I am also acting in a new serial called Jaane Kya Baat Hui on Colors.” Talking about the character she plays in Jaane Kya Baat Hui she says, “It is about the struggle of a woman who is an ordinary housewife. The character I play here is not anything like Prerna (Kasautii Zindagii Kay). She takes care of the whole world and family of four kids. She does not know about the outside world of her husband. For her, it is all about her living happily in blind faith.” So is it any different from the usual saas bahu saga? “It is different from most of these serials which show 2-3 marriages etc. Here it is not so. It’s a story of a woman, in a different way.” For Shweta it is all about experimenting. “I didn’t want to do a character same as Prerna. I want to experiment with something different,” she says. She says she loves reality shows and that if she comes across more good shows, she will readily participate in them. “I love dancing and almost everything except for singing.” She adds, “It is very different from acting, in reality shows it is me, I don’t have to portray someone else.” With Shweta going gaga over reality shows, the big question is whether acting will take a back seat. “Not at all. I still love acting. After Kasauti I wanted to take a break from acting for a while, however I did some cameos for a while.” What’s interesting is that apart from having contested in a reality show, she even became a judge of one of the shows Aajaa Mahi Vay. “Being a judge was a different experience. When I was a contestant I used to always wonder how the judges think. I realised what it is like after I became a judge, you can’t impress all the judges.” Having contested as well as played a judge, she says, “I don’t mind judging, but I would still prefer contesting because judging can get boring after a while, whereas if you are a contestant you get to try out different things.” She adds that as a judge she learnt a lot, “I was learning myself. I realised what more you can put on stage. As I told the contestants where they could improve, even I learnt something. It was something new everyday.” Talking about her participation in Jalwa 4 2 Ka 1 where she is the captain of her team, she says, “Reality shows are fun, I want to have fun, I don’t care if I win, and I don’t care what the judges say. I am doing it for myself. I gel well with my team.” It won’t be too long before we see Shweta on the big screen; she refused to divulge details though. “A couple of films have been lined up, but it’s too early to talk about them, negotiations are going on.” So would you be playing the lead? “Of course!” She adds that she doesn’t want to comment about films right now as she doesn’t know yet if she would be signing the film. Shweta has just finished filming a Punjabi film Apni Boli Apna Desh where she plays the lead character Satkar. “It’s a love story. You find many Punjabis in the US and UK, they are still Indian, dressed in salwar kameez etc. They love their country and want to come back to India. They are very much Indian,” she gives a gist about the film. Ask her if she is on talking terms with Raja and she takes a long pause before she answers, “It’s a personal question.” However she added, “I am not on talking terms with Raja.” Being a mother, handling a family, acting, judging...all of these can take away ample of time. Ask her how she balanced work and family and she laughs it away before saying, “I balance my work and my family balances me. I can’t take time out. Whenever my daughter misses me she comes to me. Whenever I get two to three days off, we all go on an outing.” With the television producer strike on for the past few days, Shweta took her family on an outing to Goa and Mahabaleshwar. So what is it that Shweta has learnt over the years in the telly industry, “People here talk about the work pressure and say they want offs and that they can’t work day and night. I would say, take work as long as it keeps coming. Every moment is important, work hard. You wanted it, so today when you have work, do it.”