MUMBAI: Actor Erica Fernandes says the financial stability from her business gave her the confidence to step away from the showbiz world and she is now returning to acting purely out of passion rather than necessity.
Fernandes, who became a household name with shows such as “Kuch Rang Pyar Ke Aise Bhi” and “Kasautii Zindagii Kay”, is making her comeback to television after a gap of five years with the series “108 Base Hospital - Uri”.
The actor said the uncertainty surrounding work in the entertainment industry was one of the reasons she moved to Dubai and started her own business. She launched her own production house and event management company, Celeste Media Film Production, in 2023.
“I was confident to be away from the industry because I’ve my business over there (in Dubai). Now I can pick and choose what I want to do. I’m doing shows purely because of my love for acting.
"So, I know that there is stability. Sometimes we don't know how long we are going to sustain with the savings. Also, you don't get to work every day in a leading role for years and in between shows, you have breaks. Hence, when COVID-19 happened, it made me think about a lot of such things,” the actor told PTI in an interview.
Another reason for taking a break from television to avoid being typecast in similar roles, she added.
"I didn't want to stick to doing the same thing and that is why I took that break as a lot of other things that were coming were in the same bracket. When ‘108 Base Hospital – Uri’ came, I was like this is massive and it made sense for me to return to TV,” Fernandes said.
In “108 Base Hospital – Uri”, the actor plays Dr. Major Naina, a trauma surgeon in the Indian Army.
Set in an Indian Army base hospital in Uri, the 30-episode series narrates the unsung bravery of army doctors. It follows the doctors, nurses and medical personnel who selflessly fight a war against time, giving wounded soldiers another chance to return to the frontlines and to their families.
The military-drama also stars Gashmeer Mahajani, Nikkhil Khurana, Hiten Tejwani and Smita Bansal, among others.
“Getting to wear this uniform, being army personnel, and being a surgeon, and all of that was intriguing. It never made me think twice. I was sold in the first place,” Fernandes said, adding that she was excited about performing action sequences in the series.
“I would tell them (makers) to let me do more action and stop treating it like, ‘She is a girl doing action, so what and how will she do?’ I’m glad people will get to see a different side of me,” she added.
Fernandes, 33, who has worked in Tamil, Telugu and Kannada films before making her mark on television, said her experience in the South Indian movie industry shaped her approach to acting.
She made her acting debut in 2013 with the Tamil movie, “Ainthu Ainthu Ainthu” and then appeared opposite the late superstar Puneeth Rajkumar in “Ninnindale”. Some of her other films are “Virattu”, “Galipatam”, and “Vizhithiru”
“Whatever I’ve learnt about acting is from the South industry. A lot of people would tell me that you don't perform TV format wise, like the usual TV acting and that’s because I came from a film background, and hence it was not over dramatic,” the actor said.
Fernandes expressed gratitude to her fans for standing by her even while she was away from movies and television.
“The popularity sometimes fizzles out but it didn’t happen in my case. We’ve social media and it is a link, earlier it was not that big but then it just boomed, and that is what kept everyone very relevant. So, if you're not on screen, you're still there, on the smaller screen and people still remember you.
"The popularity never diminished in my case. You are blessed if you have the love of so many people that you're receiving because not everyone gets it,” she said.
“108 Base Hospital – Uri” is created by Samar Khan of “The Test Case” and “Avrodh: The Siege Within” fame and helmed by Shachindra Vats. The 30-episode series airs Saturday and Sunday on COLORS and JioHotstar.