‘Human’ actress Shefali Shah speaks up about the time when she was the reigning queen of television, and why she decided to quit and move away.
Actress Shefali Shah has been garnering a lot of praise for her latest web show, ‘Human’. The National Film Award-winning actress was one of the most popular names in the television world back in the 1990s. However, she decided to move away from TV, never again to return.
Talking about the same, Shah says, “When I did television, the content was very strong. There was honesty and commitment towards characters and stories but later on the shows, the stories of the shows, and the lifeline of the shows got determined by the TRP’s of the show and the quality dropped. It was more about creating quantity than quality and that was not interesting for me at all. I love what I do too much to just go and do a job because I have to and that is exactly why I backed out from the television industry. In fact, I backed out even before that because I was going to have my babies and I wanted to be there for them every single day, till they grow up and start going to school. So, that was the choice that I made. I really don’t think that I would go back to television because I really don’t enjoy that kind of work. I love my job way too much to just do it as a compulsion. So, if something doesn’t really excite me, I wouldn’t do it.”
Shah’s career has gotten a rejuvenated boost with the advent of OTT. Her show ‘Delhi Crime’ went on to win an International Emmy Award, and now ‘Human’ is also winning lots of praises from all corners. A new season of ‘Delhi Crime’ is set to come later this year, which would also feature Shefali Shah as the central character.
It’s interesting to know that Shah isn’t the only actress to leave the world of television and move away. There are many other popular actresses who have quit television, despite having gained immense popularity on TV.
Actress Aashka Goradia has been gone from television screens for a long time and is now concentrating on her business. Goradia recently revealed that she has left the entertainment industry to focus solely on her cosmetics company.
Actress Kanchi Kaul left acting after marrying actor Shabir Ahluwalia in 2011 and moved her emphasis to her personal life. She is frequently seen visiting parties with her husband, and her close friends in the film and television industry, but she has avoided acting for the longest time.
Actress Mohena Kumari Singh, who rose to fame post ‘Dance India Dance’, married Dehradun's royal Suyash Rawat and chose to leave the entertainment industry. Singh was popular for her dance videos on her YouTube account, but she has since stopped updating and now only communicates with her admirers on Instagram.
Actress Nisha Rawal stopped acting after marrying actor Karan Mehra and has been keeping herself occupied with culinary videos and engaging social media updates. The two got separated last year.
Actress Poonam Narula has long collaborated with Ekta Kapoor, the famed producer, and serial creator, and has been in shows such as Shararat and Kasautii Zindagii Kay. Poonam did not pursue her career on television and is now a wedding planner.
Remember the name of the character, Rashi Ben? Who is now a comedic skit for the Instagram reel creators everywhere? Rucha Hasabnis was the one who portrayed the character in the show. She has also appeared in other television shows such as ‘Comedy Circus Ke Tansen’, ‘Box Cricket League’, and others. Despite having a well-established job, she decided to abandon it after marrying Rahul Jagdale in 2015. Rucha Hasabnis has made statements about her return to the television industry despite the fact that the family is now living overseas and she has been gifted with a newborn daughter.
Actress Soumya Seth is Bollywood actor Govinda’s niece. She rose to prominence with the conclusion of her project ‘Navya... Naye Dhadkan’, ‘Naye Sawaal’. She was quite successful in her profession after that, and she had offers from good serials such as ‘V The Serial’, ‘Yeh Hai Aashiqui’, ‘Dil Ki Nazar Se Khoobsurat’, ‘Chakravartin Ashoka Samrat’, and a few others. She married and chose to quit the television profession after all of that. She married Arun Kapoor in 2017 and moved to the United States with him.
Actress Mihika Verma began her career in the acting profession back in 2004. She received the title of Miss India International in 2004, and her first serial to work on was ‘Yeh Hai Mohabbatein’, in which she portrayed the role of a housewife. After her marriage, she chose to leave her acting profession behind and go to the United States with her spouse.
Actress Neha Bagga rose to prominence in the daily series ‘Bani – Ishq Da Kalma’, in which she portrayed Rajji. With that done, she became more interested in TikTok and lip-syncing video creation. She currently uploads videos that receive millions of views and has a large number of fans on social media. Her Instagram Reels are massively popular.
Actress Ankita Bhargava has appeared in a number of daily serials. Some of them, such as ‘Ek Nayi Pehchaan’, ‘Kasautii Zindagii Kay’, ‘Dekha Ek Khwaab’, and others, lasted for a long time and helped her rule the television business. However, after marrying actor Karan Patel in 2015, she chose to leave her television career.