Genelia Deshmukh on returning to acting full time: I'd love to see a lot more roles written for a working mum
Genelia Deshmukh reveals her exciting 2025 line up, what made her return to acting after a 10 year break and the kind of roles she wants to see being written
Actor Genelia Deshmukh is gearing up for an exciting 2025 as she recently took her Marathi film Raja Shivaji on floors. “This year, a lot is going on for me. I have the release of Sitaare Zameen Par opposite (actor) Aamir Khan sir. Then Raja Shivaji just went on floors, and we'll be shooting a tight schedule. There’s new development in my business venture as well. So, here’s looking forward to a great 2025,” Genelia Deshmukh says.
The actor took a break from work for a decade to focus on her family life, before returning to the screens with the 2022 Marathi release Ved. Now, she is looking forward to get back into work with full speed: “I took a break in 2012 and in that period, I didn't do too much work. I wanted that break, and I felt fulfilled by it because I had also become a mom. I wanted to give that time to my family, to my kids. But when I came back in 2022, it was on Riteish’s (Deshmukh, actor-husband) insistence as he was clear that I need to do things that I love.”
She adds that while she is raring to get back to work, she does not want to compromise on the quality. “I did Ved, and it was my first Marathi film. I felt like it was a character that I had never done before and it felt great to be getting such roles. There's so much more in me that I experienced over these past few years, and I hope I get to play more characters like these. If I do, I'll be happy to accept them wholeheartedly, but if I don't, I'll wait. I enjoy completely giving a part of myself to my role, and I really live it when I'm there. I love acting more than all the peripherals like fame and adulation. I'd love to see a lot more roles written for a single parent or a working mum; someone who is confused, distressed and something that suits the age that I'm at,” she says.
Genelia manages multiple roles in her life—actor, producer, entrepreneur, mum and a wife. Ask her how she handles it all and she gushes, “It’s just embracing life in its fullest and feeling that immense sense of gratitude that one gets to be all of it at the same time along with the other various roles that you keep playing in life. I am not looking for validation but for the immense satisfaction and happiness that you give yourself by picking up each role and doing it to the best of your capacity. It's a lifetime project as a mom and a wife, and I absolutely love doing it.”
