Exclusive/ Kriti's Mimi Co-star Sai Tamhankar Addresses Allegations Of 'Misrepresentation' Of Surrogacy In Film

Bhumi Pednekar starrer crime drama Bhakshak premiered on OTT recently and is earning a positive response from the viewers. The movie is loosely based on the Muzaffarpur Shelter Home case of 2018 that shook the nation. In Pulkit’s directorial Bhakshak, Bhumi plays the role of a journalist who braves all odds in her search for justice for the young girls who were victims of alleged sexual abuse.

Apart from Bhumi, the movie also stars Sai Tamhankar as SSP Jasmeet Kaur. Even though her role is restricted to the second half of the film with limited screen time, Sai manages to weave her character well into the storyline and her understated act stands out.

In an exclusive conversation with Republic, Sai spoke about her role in Bhashak and touched upon more aspects of her life and career.

Bhakshak is an important film: Sai Tamhankar

When asked what made her accept the role in Bhakshak, Sai said, “I think it is an important film and we all are very happy to be a part of it. It's an amazing script and I think the director's research is what impressed me the most.”

However, she remained tight-lipped about whether Bhakshak is inspired by the Muzaffarpur case. On a dejected note, she expressed that cases of child sexual abuse are rampant and her film is an earnest attempt to highlight one of them. “I will say one thing that cases as such keep happening. They happen very often. And this is a representation of all the evil that we have in society, the evil that we choose to ignore,” she said.

Sai has worked in the film industry for over 15 years now and after featuring in films across languages, she said that she resonates more with Marathi and Hindi cinema.

Sai Tamhankar addresses the controversy surrounding Mimi

Sai played the character of Shama in Mimi (2021) which went on to earn actress Kriti Sanon her first National Award for Best Actress. However, according to several medical reports, the movie largely misrepresented the concept of surrogacy around which the film was centralised.

Talking about it, she said, “I think the universal message that we wanted to send is love. Love is important. I think beyond that, it's a waste of time to say whether it's right or wrong and it was criticised. You don't do anything, people criticise you anyway. Also, to convey a good message, sometimes you have to take a little liberty. I think we deserve it, all of us.”

Sai Tamhankar on dealing with criticism of her work

Sai shared that criticism of her work affects her but it's part of the business. “We all are human beings at the end of the day. It does bother us. But we have developed certain skills as to how to handle it, how to deal with it, whether to deal with it or not to deal with it. So with practice, we have all of us. These are the must-haves when you sort of accept this profession. But yes, they do affect and sometimes, you have to let it go because this is a huge part of our profession.”

Touching upon her personal life, Tamhankar confessed that she has “been lucky and unlucky” in love.

Sai Tamhankar on dealing with rejections in showbiz

Sai shared that rejection is a part of showbiz and one has to learn to take it in the right stead. “It fuels me. It makes me go faster, work harder”, she said while adding, “It happens on a daily basis. You audition for things and things don't work out and you feel equally heartbroken every time. I accept it and move on. I get fueled, motivated, and work on myself. What else can I do?”

My father’s death was the lowest point of my life: Sai Tamhankar

Sharing a personal memory and how it shaped her life, the Mimi actress said, “When I lost my dad, I became a scared child left alone in this world to survive on its own. That felt something, but it also made me what I am today.”

Sai Tamhankar on the plight of women in cinema

While there are movies like Bhakshak that sensitively deal with issues that affect women, controversial films like Kabir Singh and Animal continue to rule the box office. Talking about the representation of women in cinema, Sai said “What we expect and what we get are two different things, we often entangle them and we get hurt. I think we should stop doing that. Definitely, I think there are people who still take stands, who still have a different thought process and they are abiding by it. So I wouldn't say that it's a very bad decision. Things will change, but slowly. We can't apply our social media speed here. It's just not fair. It's going to take time but it has seen change over the past 10 years.”

She added, “The fight is still on, isn't it? We've not lost hope. I wouldn't want to sound this disappointing because I know the fight is on and I know it's a long fight, but it's a fair fight and it has a good intent. Anything which has a good intent always wins. So let's just wait.”

On a parting note, Sai shared, “Life itself is so unpredictable. It's full of surprises. There's a grasp to it and it doesn't go straight. There are always ups and downs. I'm constantly creating something nice, something good, full of goodness.”

The actress is currently seen judging Sony Marathi’s comedy show Maharashtrachi Hasyajatra.