Narayani is back After a long hiatus, the actor returns to TV with Zee’s Phir Subah Hogi

Narayani is back

After a long hiatus, the actor returns to TV with Zee’s Phir Subah Hogi

Actor Narayani Shashtri, who had been missing in action for almost two years is back to the small screen with Zee TV’s new show Phir Subah Hogi. In her comeback role, she plays a mother to a grown-up daughter and a mistress to Ravindra Mankhani’s Thakur Jwala Singh. That’s not all. The actor who had pariticipated in the dance reality show Zara Nach Ke Dikha gets an opportunity to shake a leg again, as the Bedia tribe, on which the serial is based is known for its Raai dance. The last time Narayani was seen on the tube was in Meethi Choori No 1. The actor, however dismisses it as a “one-off thing”. Instead, she prefers to wax eloquent about “one of her favourite shows Namak Haram”, which she did three years ago about an idealistic woman who fights for the rights of villagers. In her new show, Phir Subah Hogi, Narayani’s character Gulabia supports her daughter Sugni when she rebels against the Sardhakai custom, wherein the girls from the Bedia tribe end up being mistresses to wealthy Thakurs. Though the entire tribe forces Sugni to follow the custom, Gulabia staunchly supports her daughter’s stance to have a normal married life. As Narayani says, “The story is about finding hope under testing situations. It brings to light the heinous crime of women’s exploitation in the name of customs and rituals.” In fact, it was the role that pulled Narayani from her long hiatus. “After Namak Haram, I was looking at doing something on the same lines and Gulabia appealed to me,” says the actor who didn’t want to be part of the saas-bahu sagas and took a break to quench her wander lust. “I was travelling to different places and I thoroughly enjoyed it,” she smiles. However, what is surprising is that she has agreed to make a comeback with a role that has her playing an older character. “The role is so strong and colourful that there was no way I could refuse it,” she says.