What Malini Sharma actually does now: growing vegetables

Source: Thilina Alagiyawanna on Unsplash.com

Malini Sharma was a face of Indian screens. She made her presence known in music videos, on television, and in Raaz, a 2002 horror film starring Bipasha Basu and Dino Morea. Her turn in the song Aapke Pyaar Mein made her instantly recognisable. But after several years in the limelight, Sharma slowly walked out of Bollywood. More than 20 years after the last time she starred in a film, she is back in front of the camera. However, this time, the cameras are not filming a movie. Now, she lives a life busy with the activities of vegetable farming, cooking, and taking care of a "farm stay" (bed and breakfast). All of this is in the mountains of the Sahyadri range near Pune.

Recently, Sharma has launched a series of online videos, "The Slow Local Diaries," giving glimpses of her life away from show business. In the first video of the series, she returned in front of a camera for the first time in nearly 23 years to sing the song "Aapke Pyaar Mein." This time around, she sang it without the support of a film set, stylists, or the resources of a Bollywood film production. She was shot on her farm in India, where she now spends her days surrounded by nature and homegrown food.

Her new life is in stark contrast to her former life. Sharma started as a model and became known for her music videos. She made her debut in the Bombay Vikings’ video for Kya Soorat Hai, followed by Mika Singh’s Saawan Mein Lag Gayi Aag. She went on to perform in the television show CATS (alongside Nafisa Joseph and Kuljeet Randhawa) and moved on to film. Her role in Raaz introduced her to a much larger audience through Aapke Pyaar Mein.

Sharma didn't stay in Bollywood long. In 2002, Sharma walked out of Encounter just 2 days before production began. During this time, Sharma considered a career in direction. Sharma has worked as an art director. Also, Sharma had a lot of ups and downs in her personal life. She married Priyanshu Chatterjee (known for his role in Tum Bin) and later divorced. Sharma has also adopted a reclusive lifestyle. This has made her scarcely seen in the public eye.

It was not like she suddenly quit the film and television industry; she gradually built a life away from the cinema and television. She became involved with The Slow Local, which focused on local food, crafts, workshops, and experiences with people in the community. It had pop-ups and events, reflecting her interest in simple, locally produced products and experiences. She eventually left Mumbai for the Sahyadri hills.

Today, Sharma runs a farmstay at the farm where she grows vegetables and uses the food grown there to cook for guests. It is now more than performing for an audience on the set of a movie – it is growing food, making meals, embracing visitors, and creating a space in which to slow down. Perhaps this is particularly interesting, as Sharma now wants to share this quieter life with the world after so many years away from public attention.

The Slow Local Diaries is therefore less of a Bollywood comeback and more of a personal introduction to Sharma’s newfound life. In the first video, she made the admission that it had been a long time since she appeared in front of the camera. She looked much less like a model or actress; she spoke from her farm and showed a simpler side of her life. Her message was clear: she had not disappeared. She was living a different life.

The difference between the two women has made the story interesting to those who remember Malini Sharma from the early 2000s. For many, Malini Sharma is still connected to Raaz, Aapke Pyaar Mein and all the music videos that were popular at the time. Standing with her now, surrounded by plants, vegetables and the landscape of Sahyadris, one gets the impression that she is not attempting to make herself seen in Bollywood but documenting a life far removed from the industry that made her famous.

Sharma’s story also shows that staying away from the spotlight does not necessarily mean leaving the world behind. After years of having stepped away from the spotlight, she has returned to the camera on her terms, using it to document farm life, food, and everyday life, rather than performing a scripted role. Her new videos do not say she is going back to acting but are simply an introduction to the person she became after leaving that world behind.

To people who remember Malini Sharma from Raaz, her newest appearance may feel like meeting an old face again after many years. But the setting is altogether different. Instead of a movie set, she is at her farm. Instead of a scripted character, she is showing her real routine. And instead of chasing the spotlight, she is growing vegetables, cooking for guests, and sharing the slower life she built in the Sahyadri hills.

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