Actor Kitu Gidwani has spent over four decades in the entertainment industry, working across films and television and building a career that includes memorable projects such as Jaane Tu Ya Jaane Na , Fashion and Dhobi Ghat, as well as iconic TV shows like Shaktimaan and Swabhimaan. In a recent interview with Screen, Kitu also criticised the lack of royalties for artistes and the limited, stereotypical roles offered to women as they age.
Now, the veteran actor has opened up about some of her biggest frustrations with Bollywood, calling the industry “fake” and questioning its treatment of artistes, particularly older women.
It’s a fake industry; it goes by its own vague rules. There is nothing like Hollywood’s Screen Actors Guild in India. Intellectual property rights and creative rights are zero in India. In Hollywood, actors are represented by unions such as SAG-AFTRA, while writers and directors have the WGA and DGA, respectively. These unions have negotiated provisions that can provide performers and writers with additional payments when films, television shows or other content are reused, syndicated, licensed or made available on certain platforms. These payments are often referred to as residuals. She then played Svetlana in Swabhimaan, which made her a household name. She later joined Shaktimaan, playing Geeta Vishwas, a news reporter who stood for the truth. However, she left the show after a few episodes.
I should have been able to work for 10 years and then live off my royalties for the next ten years, not slog for 40 years. Kitu began her acting journey in 1984 with the film Holi, which also featured Aamir Khan, Ashutosh Gowariker, Om Puri and others. She gained popularity after starring in the TV series Air Hostess, which aired on Doordarshan in 1986. Apart from television, Kitu has also received critical acclaim for her performances in films such as Dance of the Wind (1997), Deepa Mehta’s Earth (1998), Govind Nihalani’s Rukhmavati Ki Haveli (1991), Kamal Haasan’s Abhay and Deham (2001).
Talking about how several musicians have been fighting for unpaid royalties, Kitu said actors face the same issue. She said, “Bollywood is not a real industry; it’s a cottage industry.
