In an exclusive interview, Neelam opens up on finishing 40 years in Bollywood, and venturing out of her comfort zone with voice acting in Marvel’s Wastelanders.
Remember Neelam’s key cameo in Karan Johar’s 1998 directorial debut Kuch Kuch Hota Hai? Her effervescent energy as a VJ lifted every scene she was in. But remember the name of her segment in the film? The Neelam Show. That’s what Neelam has come to be known for in the 40 years since she made her debut: being herself.
Being Neelam
“I’m fine to do projects with different people, new people. I’m fine with stepping out of my comfort zone. I’ve done that for over 40 films. I’m quite okay to do that,” said Neelam in an exclusive interview. One would imagine that from being the leading lady in Bollywood films of the 1980s to voicing Jean Grey in Audible Original Marvel’s Wastelanders: Wolverine, Neelam has come a long way. But the actor has come into her own only by playing herself on screen.
After working consistently for 15 years, Neelam took a break from acting at the start of the new millennium to focus on her jewellery business. She made a long-awaited return to the screen with Netflix India’s reality show Fabulous Lives of Bollywood Wives, which further propped up her jewellery business. For her, acting is also a means to that end. “Yes I did Audible’s Marvel series, yes I’m doing Fabulous Lives of Bollywood Lives, yes I did Made in Heaven, but my jewellery business is my main hustle,” Neelam reiterates.
While she insists she’s open to venturing out into the deep sea, the lack of dependence on a ‘comeback’ allows her to pick and choose what works for her at this stage of her life and career. “What made me excited was that it (Marvel’s Wastelanders) was something new and something I hadn’t done. Voice acting and podcasts have become very relevant. I love exploring new avenues. Like, for instance, when I did a reality show, it was me stepping out of my comfort zone. Now, doing this Marvel series is something I never imagined I’d do.”
Neelam 2.0
Some would argue that playing yourself on screen like she did in Fabulous Lives of Bollywood Wives isn’t too adventurous, but for an ‘80s female actor, once at the mercy of merciless tabloids, to put her life out there isn’t a cakewalk. From being open about her concern for ageing and getting fillers to her transparent trepidation about making a comeback in a whole new world, Neelam hasn’t shied away from making her life public. Even when she did make a comeback with Made in Heaven Season 2 last year, she was glad to be cast opposite her husband Samir Soni because she had to break her onscreen no-kissing rule.
But returning to the dubbing studios to record Marvel’s Wastelanders was like a homecoming. For an ‘80s and ’90s actor, juggling multiple shifts, recreating the emotion through their voice in the pre-sync sound era, was like second nature. “I don’t do any practise, rehearsals or riyaaz before any dubbing. I’ve never done it. The only thing you’ve to keep in mind is when you’re using your voice so much, sometimes it does get tired. So I could dub max only for 2-3 hours,” says Neelam, very nonchalantly.
As we gear up to see her again in Fabulous Lives of Bollywood Wives Season 3, Neelam is set to step out of the comfort zone again, as she joins fellow Bollywood wives to go against three of Delhi’s influential socialites. She chooses baby steps over giant leaps as she ventures into the twilight dark. Unlike Jean Grey, her Marvel’s Wastelanders character, Neelam doesn’t want to be the Dark Phoenix, but knows well enough that she can get away with calling it “John Grey.”