MUMBAI: Shefali Shah is one of the most versatile actresses in the industry, and her latest major role, in the web series "Delhi Crime" proves the fact. In her career of over 25 years, however, she has often been typecast into roles that are double her age. In "Waqt: The Race Against Time", for instance, Shefali played Akshay Kumars mother, despite being a good five years younger than the actor!

"It's been a rocky journey. It was not like a smooth shell. Earlier, the star system played a big role in our industry. Also, I played elderly roles at a very young age. When I was 20, I played roles of a 35-40 year old female. So that's how people labelled me and put me under that 'elderly roles' category. Coming out of that label was a big struggle," recalled Shefali.

However, she added that things have changed now. "Projects like 'Juice', 'Once Again' and 'Delhi Crime' put me in a new light. Such projects showed me in the roles of my age group, wherein I played central characters. People now believe I have capabilties of carrying an entire film or show on my shoulders," Shefali told IANS.

Last year, Shefali impressed the audience with her stellar performance in the Netflix show "Delhi Crime", based on the Nirbhaya gangrape that shook the nation in 2012. She is now preparing for the second season of the show.

Speaking more about the project, Shefali said: " 'Delhi Crime 2' is currently in pipeline. It will explore a different case of crime. I feel blessed to be part of such crucial projects, which help in creating awareness among people."

SOURCE : IANS