Let nothing hold you back: Seema Biswas

She set out to take a master class in acting. But when Seema Biswas took to the stage and began speaking, she ended up doling out a lot of life lessons as well. Excerpt from an engaging interactive session, with the National Award winning actor.

Acting is an expression of inner self
‘Mera painting aur aapka painting alag hai’. I choose characters based on my understanding, imagination and logic. I always choose characters after accessing 5Ws and 1H — who, what, when, where why and how. For me acting is an expression of inner self. Internalising a character is very important if you want to act that character out. An actor should be flexible.

Believe in yourself, never mind your body
You see, an actor should be like water.

Water

can take the shape of a river, it can be ice or even a tsunami. Even mote actors can be flexible (laughs). You might have seen fat actors performing very well on screen. It’s because from within they believe; they are not bothered about their body. Actors should be able to handle any kind of roles.

To succeed, all you need is passion
We always think Bollywood is all about glamour and beauty. But no, it’s nothing like that. The only thing you need to make it big is passion. It’s my passion for acting that gave me an
entry into Bollywood that is dominated by glamour and beauty.

Never ever give up ever
To work with a typewriter for the first time is obviously difficult for anybody. But in the course of time, with practise, one is able to type without even looking at the keys. How does that happen? because of practice. Similarly practice, or rehearsal, is very important for an actor. So in short, the secret behind my success is practice. That, and passion and meditation.
See, ups and downs are common in life. Obstacles may come on your way, but don’t give up; at least give it a try. Positive rahna hai, energy ko chodna nahi — that’s the mantra. Keep telling yourself: “I’ll prove it, I have to do it”. Consider life as a learning process. Be honest, genuine, sincere. Don’t be arrogant. Arrogance is an enemy. Don’t bother about how old you are; just be positive and passionate about your work.