Thought Box

POWERFUL PEOPLE: WHEN OPPORTUNITIES KNOCK

POWERFUL PEOPLE: WHEN OPPORTUNITIES KNOCK

by Khalid Mohamed September 30 2025, 12:00 am Estimated Reading Time: 12 mins, 30 secs

Khalid Mohamed interviews film, theatre and web series actor, Soni Razdan who’s back in the limelight, with a searing performance in Songs of Paradise, a tribute to the real-life story of Kashmir’s defiant Raj Begum.

Soni Razdan, acclaimed film, theatre and web series actor, returns with a powerful performance in Songs of Paradise, directed by Danish Renzu and streaming on Prime Video. The film, inspired by the extraordinary life of Kashmiri legend Raj Begum, highlights Razdan’s nuanced portrayal of the iconic singer in her later years. Known for her remarkable roles in Saaransh, Raazi, Such a Long Journey and Tanaav, Razdan has consistently impressed with her versatility while maintaining a dignified distance from media sensationalism. Beyond acting, she is recognised for her activism, from supporting PETA India and Kashmiri students to championing equitable vaccine access during the pandemic. In this exclusive interview with Khalid Mohamed, Razdan opens up about her craft, challenges, collaborations with directors like Shyam Benegal and Aparna Sen, and her continued passion for meaningful cinema that defies formula-driven storytelling.

She was more than a familiar name on the theatre scene when I first met Soni Razdan. And I was at her marriage in 1986 to filmmaker Mahesh Bhatt, in a suite of the Taj Mahal Hotel.
Not that I ever got to know the actor closely, she has always maintained a discreet distance from the media, and wisely so. Responding to personal questions, be it on her spouse or her tremendously gifted daughter Alia, is a clear no-no.

And even though she has toted an impressive filmography, and a web series count, she has avoided the route to publicity with a pair of tongs.
A social activist, in 2018, she signed a PETA India petition supporting the ban of animals in circuses. Next year, she expressed solidarity with Kashmiri students facing mob violence and discrimination across India, stating "Mobs are the terrorists, not you."

She was among other actors, calling for peace and dialogue amid rising tensions between India and Pakistan. During the COVID pandemic, Razdan advocated for broader access to vaccines, questioning the prioritisation of age groups for vaccination and emphasised the need to protect those in high-contact professions.
Soni Razdan also lent her support to the ‘Find A Bed’ initiative to help COVID-affected individuals in finding isolation facilities.

Now that her deeply evocative performance as the legendary Kashmiri singer, male prejudice-erasing Raj Begum in her latter-day years, in the justly feted film, Songs of Paradise, has been in the news ever since it has been streaming on Prime Video, I contacted her for a conversation. Of course, there was an unspoken caveat of purely discussing her range, the many highs and some lows of her as an actor.

Cut then to excerpts of the one-to-one with Soni Razdan:
On whether the film project was discussed when she had shot for two music videos shot in Kashmir with Danish Renzu.
Yes, when we shot the second music video, Ae Savere , Danish had mentioned that he was working on this story about Raj Begum. I told him I’m doing it without reading any script or knowing anything about my role. It sounded fascinating. 

On her performance as the older Raj Begum –renamed Noor Begum -- being restrained and yet leaving a powerful impact. How did she approach the role?
Honestly, they say it never rains but pours. I had very little time to do anything much because I was shooting for another film, just before this in Bhopal, and that was a big role. I somehow managed to learn the Kashmiri lines of dialogue and the lyrics, and mull over the character a bit. That was really it.

It was when I got to Kashmir that I was able to fully immerse myself into the role and the character. I must say the locations, the atmosphere and the costumes helped tremendously. I was finally able to inhale Noor Begum, and exhale whatever finally became the performance.
On sharing the role with Saba Azad, yet maintaining continuity with the character.

I’m not sure we did actually! We really depended on the director a lot for this. Because Saba and I never shot together, we couldn’t have a discussion either. Danish was instrumental in making me understand what Saba had done and how she had played it. Danish isn’t an overbearing director, so he left a lot of it up to me.

On the fact that her father was a Kashmiri Pandit useful in the diction, the body language and lip-syncing during the song picturizations.

Not at all. I am hardly Kashmiri other than my roots.  My family never lived in Kashmir. I think there was a migration of Pandits in the late 1800s, and that’s when my paternal ancestors moved to Shimla. I don’t speak the language, unfortunately. I would have loved to. It is such a beautiful language. That’s my big regret. Who knows maybe I’ll attempt to learn the language. I would love to try.

On whether the film would work if it had more drama and detail. Or was the omission of such elements, its strength?

Well, I felt it had a lot of drama. But it’s somebody’s life and you can’t fabricate excessively around that. Drama doesn’t always have to be obvious to be drama. It’s the quiet battles that people fight which also constitute conflict and drama. Also I think audiences are constantly being bombarded with a lot of action and tension in movies, and it’s so refreshing to soak in a different kind of film once in a while, one that isn’t in a rush to tell its story, one that is not necessarily following a market trend. I think that’s why people are enjoying the film.


On whether any scene was especially demanding. Were the scenes shot in a linear manner or simultaneously while narrating the journey of Raj Begum as a young and the older version of herself?

We shot Songs of Paradise in 2022. I don’t remember what I did the day before yesterday, so this is something I’m afraid that I can’t remember. I don’t think I found any scene terribly demanding.  I really enjoyed my work and if anything was demanding, it would have been for me to play this character with a certain gravitas as opposed to being emotionally all over the place. 

On her estimable film and theatre work over the decades, having worked also with Shyam Benegal and Aparna Sen. How come she isn’t seen far more often on screen or stage?
Well, I’ve done a lot of work, which hasn’t been released for some reason or the other. Also, I haven’t been offered that many parts to play. I wouldn’t be able to answer for other people as to why they haven’t cast me. I would be very happy if I had a lot of work to choose from! 
On which five films she has been most creatively satisfied with. Would Saaransh top the list?
Yes. I would say Saaransh, Such A Long Journey, Yours Truly, Pippa, and Songs of Paradise would come out tops. 

On how she looks back at theatre. If I remember correctly, she would attend quite a few of the Adishakti workshops and rehearsals of Veenapani Chawla. In sum what did she learn or unlearn from the approaches of Satyadev Dubey and Chawla?
No, I didn’t work with Veenapani. I attended one or two workshops with her.  I worked a lot with Satyadev Dubey and Pearl Padamsee initially and a bit with Motley as well. Dubey was a great teacher; he had a tremendous sense of what is required to hold an audience. He was very inspiring to work with. I just loved the way he was able to peel back layers of a character and help you to get under its skin.

Theatre is extremely demanding. It’s not something you can do with half your heart. You need to give it your all. It is so exacting when you are performing before a ‘live’ audience. You learn how to hold them in your grasp. You learn that they can be restless and how to seduce them back to attention. Sometimes you fail. It’s a fascinating medium, tough, but exhilarating after a good show.

Performing before a camera is also very challenging in a different way. You can’t get away with cheating. You must be true to what you are doing and focused because the camera picks up every little thing. And when you’re not there it shows in the performance.

What I love about both the mediums is that I still feel I have a lot to learn, and every time I act, I learn something new. And that is so wonderful. That’s why I want to keep doing it again and again. I never feel that I know it all or that I’ve got it completely under my belt. I want to be better every time. At times, I work with brilliant actors and learn so much from them. I recently did a show in the U.K., which will release soon, I hope. My role wasn’t huge but what I got in terms of a learning experience was incredibly powerful.

On whether the fact that her mother was British, lead to the misconception that she was ‘too westernized’.
My mother is actually German. I would say possibly I was a little ahead of my time because when I was younger, my westernised looks were at odds with what had required them. But somehow, I managed to garner some work and make my presence felt. But I must tell you it wasn’t easy. It was very, very frustrating at times. There was no television, no OTT. There were only films, and we had to find our way into them somehow. It was hard.


On whether she lost out on important roles because of groupism in Bollywood.
Those times were very different., in many ways they were simpler, but of course we were not spoiled for choice.  It was either Hindi movies or nothing -- until Doordarshan came along. Then as you know, I was in the series, Ramesh Sippy’s Buniyaad and did quite well for myself.

There wasn’t that much groupism when I was young. I always wanted to be taken seriously as an actor. Perhaps that was my biggest mistake. I should’ve marketed myself as a more glamorous actress. The truth is, I didn’t know where to begin.  All I knew was that I wanted to act, and I did what I could. I do feel that if I had looked very Indian, I would’ve had a much better chance of succeeding and making it bigger.

On whether she is okay about appearing in web series and which ones have given her sufficient scope as an actor.

Oh yes, absolutely. I love doing web series.  I’ve just done one for Netflix and my role is decent. It hasn’t released yet, so I can’t talk about it. I’ve done a wonderful show with Vir Das, which we are hoping will release soon. Tanaav did give me a lot of scope, although the role was not very large. But it’s an excellent show to be a part of, very authentic and conceptualised.
On whether she has been inundated with similar offers after portraying Alia's mother in Raazi.

Ha ha no, absolutely not!
On whether she has got her deserved opportunities in films, theatre or web series. In retrospect, it does seem that she has been underused and underappreciated.

I would tend to agree with that. I don’t think I got the opportunities that I should have or could have for whatever reasons. But there is always the future. And I am a pathological optimist! 

On how she approaches the craft of acting. Are research and rehearsals essential? Or does she prefer spontaneity?

I definitely don’t like over-rehearsing. For me, it’s all about getting the lines of dialogue out of the way so that I can then feel the character, the scene and play the part without thinking too much. I suppose I’m an instinctive actor that way. 

On any exciting projects coming up. Does she wait for roles to come to her? It would seem she lacks that killer instinct to be competitive.
I am very competitive, but I’ve never been able to pick up the phone and call people to ask them for work. That’s just not me. I feel I’ve been around long enough, and people should be able to think of me. Perhaps that’s not how it works. God knows.

On whether Songs of Paradise and the performances by Saba Azad and her receiving the merit they deserve.

I think we are getting a lot of recognition. Many people are seeing the film and that is very rewarding. We’re getting a lot of wonderful feedback every single day about how much viewers are loving the film, the music and our performances. So right now, I’m feeling incredibly gratified about the whole experience.

Indeed, it is doing much better than I expected simply because films like Songs of Paradise don’t get made often and definitely don’t get released often. We have been incredibly lucky. 

On any parting lines.
Nothing really other than that if we want a more varied basket of films to be made, then people who are green lighting them need to be more passionate and think with emotions rather than what they imagine to be marketing numbers.

Films have always been a business of the heart. We have seen time and again that where there is passion, there are outstanding stories being told. In the old days, that’s how they were made. Somebody felt it was a good story, somebody backed it with passion and that was it.

Of course, I understand the needs of the marketplace. At the same time, I feel we are far too constrained on many levels. Today, somebody might think there is a good story there but because it doesn’t fit into some box or the other, the film just doesn’t get made. That I think is the death of creativity. 




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