Badhai Do To Sharmaji Namkeen: Sheeba Chadha’s Acting Makes Us Feel At Home

It's highly uncommon that someone has not seen Sheeba Chadha perform. Some of them may recall her as the vengeful but well-intentioned aunt from Dum Laga Ke Haisha, or the caring but slightly classist mother from Badhai Do. Perhaps they recognise her as the long-suffering Mohini, whose hopes were tragically wrecked in Bandish Bandits, Mumtaz from Taj Mahal 1989, whose attempts to flee her past failures, or, most recently, Usha from Pagglait, who loses her 20-something son. Chadha's character in Mirzapur also deserves a mention as we revisit the actor's commendable screen presence. 

In terms of recognising – and channelling – her singular skill, mainstream Hindi cinema has been a late bloomer. She is still cast as the protagonists' middle-aged mother or aunt in a crowded family, and she has yet to be granted an author-backed role. Her Hindi cinema legacy, which was largely unknown until 2015, now has a sense of identity. It's only right that her ascension has coincided with the emergence of a genre dedicated to recognising the best of the best. Sheeba has enchanted us with her ability to locate the truth and spirit of a character in a number of different performances.

Sheeba Chadha Characters That Won Us Over

Badhai Do

From snooping on Shardul and Sumi to teaching the latter how to be the perfect “wife,” in order to “fix” the couple’s marriage while being in the dark about their “hidden” sexualities, Sheeba Chadha’s ">performance is warm and welcoming as it is hilarious. Probably, all of us would relate to mothers being extra-cautious and annoyingly insecure about their children’s personal affairs and lives in general. All hell breaks loose when anything untoward happens. Chadha's career as a movie mom has come full circle, with the snobbish but astute single mother of the first film morphing into the mild-mannered but stoic single mother of the second. Her “Mrs Thakur” is a deliciously bizarre on-screen parent: a socially uncomfortable anomaly who secretly sympathises with her son who is shackled by Indian society's conventions. She, too, feels compelled to act in a certain manner and assert matriarchal dominance over her son. But, as seen by moments in which she fails miserably as the stern "saas" in front of her perplexed daughter-in-law, she is innately incapable of doing so.

Dum Laga Ke Haisha

Sheeba Chadha's character journey is linked to that of Naintara Tiwari, the "single" aunt in the male protagonist's Haridwar-dwelling family. Naintara begins as the story's standard nosy bua: a colour-giving shade at best, and a cultural afterthought that most of us haven't been conditioned to value. However, as the film unfolds, Naintara transforms into a real person, complete with a tragic background, insecurities, and wisdom that alter the fate of the main characters. She is no longer a supporting character, surprising both the audience and the tale with a backstory that a commercial Hindi movie does not allow for bitchy-aunt clichés. At some level, the phone call informing her of her estranged husband's death shows the lead-actor fragility hiding beneath the illusion of supporting-turn oddities. Both performer and character went from a preconceived notion to a flesh-and-blood reality at that moment. Sheeba Chadha's makeover mirrors her own ascension into the spotlight.

Luck By Chance

Chadha was cast against type in Luck By Chance, when she played the human personification of the film's title when she was at the height of her TV playing career. Chadha gives a highly nuanced performance as the shy and well-meaning wife who turns a not-so-blind eye to her small-time Bollywood-producer husband's transactions. Despite the fact that she has only a few moments, she draws an intimate portrayal of her character's life – a lady who unwillingly networks for her husband while striving for the lifestyle her prosperous friends enjoy – without detracting from the film's central theme. 

Pagglait

The joint character of Ashutosh Rana and Sheeba Chadha as bereaved parents at odds with the procedural nature of mourning in a Lucknow household would be the living, breathing embodiment of the classic statement, "What is sadness but love persevering?" While Rana was praised for his portrayal of a beleaguered father, Chadha's performance as a wounded but sympathetic mother-in-law formed the story's central theme of a young widow attempting to "feel" the way she is supposed to. A mother who is constantly on the edge of breaking down but manages to keep it together with weak dignity – and a countenance that betrays the agony of speaking in the midst of overwhelming loss – is a difficult role to perform. 

Suggested Reading: Meet The Female Supporting Star Cast of Pagglait

Sharmaji Namkeen

To those familiar with the actor's exceptional face-acting, playing a West Delhi “kitty” party aficionado may appear fragile. Sheeba Chadha, on the other hand, is endearing as the playfully posh housewife who introduces the protagonist Sharmaji to the live-cooking industry. The film is built around a unique script that defies narrative and social bias against the elderly and powerless, making Chadha's breezy performance a delight to see. Her infectious grin, as well as her ability to transform intellectually illiterate characters into emotionally smart ones, are on full show here. Chadha loosens her comedy muscles in the climax "set piece" at a police station, where the women burst into a police station anxious to free their male buddy. As the affluent lady trapped in a chaotic milieu she's only ever seen in movies, she's perfectly awkward.

Feature image credit: TOI.