After captivating audiences in the 90s with iconic films like ‘Suryavanshi’ alongside Salman Khan, Sheeba Akashdeep Sabir returns to the spotlight with a compelling performance in Alia Bhatt-starrer ‘Jigra.’

In an exclusive conversation, the veteran actress reflects on her remarkable journey, sharing insights into the evolution of Bollywood since her debut.

From navigating the changing landscape of the film industry to her aspirations for more substantial roles, Sheeba opens up about her experiences, lessons learned, and future ambitions. Read our chat with her:

What led to the hiatus in your film career, and what drew you back to acting with 'Jigra'?

The question of a comeback film is really defunct because I didn’t really go anywhere. I continued to act in films even after marriage. I was sporadically doing films. Both ‘Ghaath’ and ‘Dum’ I did post my marriage. I also had a very nice guest appearance in ‘Rocky Aur Rani Ki Prem Kahaani’ last year. There is not a question of me going somewhere and then making my comeback. It’s just that I have been reclusive and chose not to work a lot but ‘Jigra’ is a combination of Dharma Productions, Vasan Bala, and Alia Bhatt. It’s a project that an actor would not say no to.

Can you share your experience of working on ‘Jigra’? Any memorable moments or challenges?

It was an exciting time to work with this combination of production, direction, and acting. I thoroughly enjoyed the process, also because it is the first time in our careers that for the first time my real life husband (filmmaker Akashdeep Sabir) has played my reel life husband. For all the scenes in fact, we were together. It was an interesting part to see my husband as an actor.

How was your experience of working with director Vasan Bala and actor Alia Bhatt?

Vasan is quite a genius and I hope to do some much more interesting work with him. Alia is one of the most natural actors that I have seen. She is natural, she is real, she kind of embodies any part that she plays, and she deserves to be the number one actress in the industry today.

Looking back, what memories do you cherish most from your 90s film journey, especially from ‘Suryavanshi,’ ‘Miss 420,’ and ‘Pyar Ka Rog’?

I cherish doing all these main lead roles in memorable films, whether it was ‘Suryavanshi’, ‘Hum Hain Kamaal Ke’, ‘Athisaya Piravi’, or ‘Yeh Aag Kab Bujhegi’. Each and every film had its own special moments, and every single hero I worked with pretty much was really nice. We would become friends for the duration we were filming, and projects at that time took ever a year to complete. It used to be a very friendly and fun journey.

Having worked with some of industry’s top actors like Rajinikanth, Mithun Chakraborty, Salman Khan, Akshay Kumar, Jackie Shroff, and many others, who has been your favourite co-star, and why?

Funnily enough, during my journey as a main lead in the films, every actor that I worked with was pretty much the best co-star. I did two films back-to-back with Rahul Roy, we had a really good friendly journey. With Salman Khan also I did two films out of which ‘Suryavanshi’ got released. Akshay Kumar and I also had a family-like relationship. Suniel Shetty used to be quite a prankster on the set, and Saif Ali Khan used to do amazing impersonations of my favourite actors from Hollywood. I had a great time with all the heroes I worked with.

How do you perceive the changes in Bollywood since your debut in the ‘90s?

Since I debuted, younger people have come into the industry. Things have become very streamlined and professional. Now people announce release dates on the day you start filming. The first day of the shoot you get to know when the film is going to release, something that never used to happen back then. It was all a hit and miss.

In the past, you'd complete a film without knowing its release timeline, sometimes waiting two years or more for it to hit the screens. That has pretty much changed today. Filmmaking has changed in the sense that it has become bigger, more professional, and the new casting funda of auditions and look test wasn’t really there back then. During those days we would work on relationships, meeting people, and meet and greets. So, the casting process has changed drastically. Now if you have a huge body of work, people still want you to audition; that’s something that is really different.

What kind of roles or genres would you like to explore now?

I am really keen to do a variety of parts. I would love to do an action film. I did an action part in ‘Hum Hain Kamaal Ke’ wherein I was playing a boy, an auto-rickshaw driver and had had a lot of fight sequences. In ‘Kaalia’ I played a police inspector. I enjoyed that genre a lot. I’d like to do action again, would love to do comedy, and would want to explore more genres.

Are there any upcoming projects or collaborations you're excited about?

After ‘Jigra’, I have Sonu Sood’s ‘Fateh’ coming up which is up for a release in January 2025. In February, I have a Punjabi film coming up. I have a couple of interesting things lined up that I’m exploring, and I’m really looking forward to it all.

How do you envision your career trajectory unfolding from here?

I hope from here on more interestings roles come my way that are bigger and meatier. Now with OTT, television and films, especially with language films, everything has opened up and become pretty centralized. The characterizations and roles for every age group of actors has become so much more. There is so much content to be a part of.

One thing you wish you knew before entering the film industry?

I wish I was better prepared. I wish I had not said no to certain things that I had declined, and yes to those that I said yes to in terms of roles I played. Hindsight is 2020, so there are many things that I could have done differently. Perhaps I could have been more aggressive in pursuing my career which I wasn’t.

Lastly, any words for your ‘Kaalia’ co-star Mithun Chakraborty who recently became the recipient of Dadasaheb Phalke Award?

Mithun Da has always been a really wonderful guy. Eating with him on the sets was always amazing, apart from working together, of course. He’s good fun and professional. He deserves the Dadasaheb Phalke Award not only for the body of the work he has done but also because he is a really nice person.