Veteran actor Nafisa Ali is cancer free and is keen to get back to acting. Last November, Ali revealed on social media that she was diagnosed with stage three cancer and she took to Instagram again recently to reveal that she was looking for work, preferably elegant roles befitting her seniority and experience.
"My message was to send a greeting and say, 'I am medically certified as cancer-free'. I wanted to share it with my industry and everyone. I am a cancer warrior and I have overcome it and I want to celebrate my life.
"I want to celebrate that I am ok, I am not sick anymore, if there is work for me then I am happy to do that work. I act in a film once in while and enjoy it. Acting is not my profession, it is my passion," Ali said.
Veteran actor Neena Gupta had also sought work on social media, which led to performances like Badhaai Ho. "She (Gupta) is my dear friend. It is amazing that she did and she got beautiful roles to act. I am happy for her," Ali said.
In her Instagram post, Ali wrote a brief introduction: "I am Nafisa Ali Sodhi and I would like an elegant role to portray in Indian cinema. So looking for a perfect script as a senior actor, I need to work to express my emotions. I will not be dictated to. May God give each of us the strength to follow our dreams."
The actor said she would love to be a part of a Salman Khan film, having worked with his screenwriter-father Salim Khan on 1979 film Junoon, her debut. "I would love to be a grandmother or an elderly person in a sensitive Salman Khan movie. When I did 'Junoon', I was great friends with Salim-Javed (writer duo). Salman and all were so small at that time. I used to teach them swimming. Salman is special, he is like a kid. He has a heart of gold. Mistakes happen in life..."
Ali was last seen in 2018 release Saheb, Biwi Aur Gangster 3.
Asked if her post had led to any offers, Ali said it had but she would talk about it when things materialise. The 62-year-old actor, whose credits include films such as Major Saab, Life In a Metro and Yamla Pagla Deewana, believes today both storytelling and the audiences' preference have changed.
"There are blockbuster movies but the storytelling today has become interesting. The after effects and all is good. The audience has to be motivated to see a film. Today the audience has become sharper. Today people don't want to see a slapstick, mediocre or badly performed film. People want to see good cinema."
Ali also caught up on Netflix original series Leila, which explores a dystopian future of oppressive socio-political-religious order. "I have seen 'Leila' recently and I thought it is a very interesting perspective, of course, it is all fictional. How frightening it can be to have religious fanaticism."
