Not ready to play grandparent's role yet: Supriya Pilgaonkar

Be it "Dilli Wali Thakur Gurls" or "Ek Nanad Ki Khushiyon Ki Chaabi...Meri Bhabhi" or "Sasural Genda Phool", the TV shows showcased Supriya Pilgaonkar as a mother. However, the actress says she is not yet ready to take on the role of a grandparent.

Supriya, who has daughter Shriya with husband and actor Sachin Pilgaonkar, feels TV creates a "stereotypical image of an actor" due to which the audience wants to see them playing the same type of roles every time.

"I think mothers are very important on Indian television. The kind of mother that I first played came across as a very positive mother. That's why this role is offered to me every time," Supriya told IANS here.

"Today, actresses who play mothers are sometimes equal to the age of their onscreen children. At least I'm a mother of a 25-year-old daughter. So, I can play this part convincingly. But I am thankful that I am not getting offers to play a grandparent. I won't play that role right now for sure," she added.

Supriya, best known for her roles in shows like "Tu Tu Main Main", "Kabhi Biwi Kabhi Jasoos" and "Tu Tota Main Maina", says TV restricts actors to certain types of roles, and age plays a crucial factor in that.

"Age becomes a bar for actors here. On television, they are not experimenting too much. If I will think of playing a specific role, then there should be a producer to make it and there should be a particular audience who wish to watch something like that."

"But on TV, your life is a cliche. If the viewers will like you in a specific role, they will demand to see more of that. TV actually creates a stereotypical image of an actor," Supriya said.

Does she get creative satisfaction after playing similar characters again and again?

"I don't have any problem in finding satisfaction in whatever I do. It's my personality. I try to find satisfaction for myself. If I'm doing theatre or films or TV, I try to do good scenes nicely.

"You can only chose from whatever comes your way. If you will see, as an actor I'm not growing too much. I'm not doing different variety of roles. But there is no point of complaining as it's not in my hands," she said.

However, Supriya feels that the stereotypical image of 'saas bahu' sagas on Indian television is changing gradually.

"I won't say that the image of Indian television has completely changed. But it is changing slowly. It all depends on the acceptance of people. If the audience will accept new concept then producers will experiment more with the content. But this will happen slowly. I feel that there should be something new aired at regular intervals and not just 'saas bahu' shows," she said.

Supriya will next be seen in the forthcoming TV show "Kuch Rang Pyar Ke Aise Bhi", which will be aired on Sony Entertainment Television starting February 29.

"I was not willing do this show as I just finished two other shows. So I didn't want to go back to work immediately. But when I read the script and my character, I found it really interesting. That's why I thought that I should do this," Supriya said.

"The story of the show is quite real as it can be seen in most of the houses. My character is not similar to the ones I have played in the recent past," she added.

Apart from her, the show will also feature Shaheer Sheikh and Erica Fernandes.