Every time people tried to kick me at my lowest, I bounced back harder: Raveena Tandon

Actor Raveena Tandon looks back at her journey of 30 years in Bollywood and says she made her way through the male dominated industry by sheer hard work.

Tandon made her screen debut with the 1991 action film 'Patthar Ke Phool' and emerged as one of the top female stars of the decade, featuring in money spinners like 'Mohra', 'Diwale', "

Khiladiyon Ka Khiladi

" and 'Bade Miyan Chote Miyan'.

When asked, how did Tandon navigate the patriarchal setup of Bollywood to remain consistently on the top, the actor said there were breaking points, but her willpower and family always had her back.

"Perseverance, hard work will always get rewarded. If you are talented, hardworking, and sincere, no one can take it away from you. It was a man's world then but I see a great change today. There are times when you thank your family for being your backbone, for being there for you.

"You also thank those, who were not there for you, who probably tried to kick you at a time when you were down at your lowest and tried to completely bury you. I thank those people because they gave me the drive to bounce back even harder. The harder they tried to put me down, the stronger I wanted to bounce back," Tandon told PTI.

"From '

Daman

', '

Shool

' or 'Maatr'. It is important for me to pick up scripts that are about women empowerment. There is a subtle message in this that reaches out to many

Kasturi Dogras

, who are facing the same (dilemma) of certain decisions to make, with no emotional backing."

Further, The actor recalled how, when she was in her mid-20s, she was shooting for a song in Mauritius, which required her to wear a mini skirt, have two pigtails and pass off as a 16-year-old.

Tandon said she realised then, that she has to challenge herself as a performer and not get caught in a comfort zone. In 1999, she made that switch with the acclaimed film 'Shool', followed by 'Daman' which got her the National Award.

"I thought how long will I continue this, I need to evolve, I can't be stagnating. You have to push yourself, challenge yourself. That is when I consciously started picking up films that were different from my last project.

"If you see my films, from 'Shool' to 'Ghulam-E-Mustafa', 'Aks' to a 'Dulhe Raja', 'Andaaz Apna Apna', I have tried to do varied roles," she added.