It has been over six years since actor Sarah Jane Dias was seen in a feature film. However, the actor seems to be making the most of the boom the streaming industry is witnessing, as she starred in two recently released wed series — Made in Heaven 2 and The Freelancer.
“OTT has opened so many new avenues for me. The rate at which content gets produced and consumed on the web, is amazing. And I’m sure this industry is here to stay,” says Dias, who has also featured in OTT projects such as Inside Edge, Time Out, Parchhayee, Tandav and Never Kiss Your Best Friend.
Besides the amount of content that gets churned out for various platforms, the actor feels it’s the variety of roles it offers that allows an artiste to prove their acting chops without the risk of being typecast. In her case, for instance, points the actor, she got to portray two extremely different role in her recent outings. While in MIH 2, she plays a Christian bride marrying a guy 10 years younger to her, “In The Freelancer, I got to try and do action, which has always been a dream. I have done comedy, horror, romance, and this time, I go to do proper action onscreen.”
Meanwhile, apart from her acting commitments, the 40-year-old is also a flag-bearer of mental wellness, and has her own mental health podcast, too.
“It was my journey with mental health that motivated me to start this podcast called The Sarah Jane Show,” shares the actor, adding, “I was clinically diagnosed with anxiety and depression about three years ago. It was a very hard journey for me to go through. And I felt the need to share this with the rest of the world because there are so many people suffering in silence.”
With a purpose of “spreading awareness”, and ensuring that “nobody should suffer alone”, Dias has taken it upon her as a mission to help people dealing with mental health issues. “When one is going through a rough time, they feel they are alone; I felt that was, too. It was very difficult for me to talk about it, and then meet and understand people. I felt a compulsion to share when I started to feel better. The people (my friend, doctor, physical trainer, etc) on my podcast were actually a part of my journey of healing,” she tells us.
Acknowledging the pressures that come with being a public figure especially part of the glamour world, the actor believes in prioritising her own well-being over other things. “I practice a lot of what I preach. I meditate and do physical exercise every day, besides eating and sleeping well. I am in therapy and I’ve been very open in talking about it. I am just like every other human being,” she says.
Mention social media in particular, and the actor goes on to say, “I have made peace with the fact that this industry is unpredictable. It’s not really in my control. I can’t control whether my reel will be a viral reel, or anything for that matter. I keep taking social media breaks. I don’t post every day and I don’t really care. I don’t feel that pressure because to me it’s more important to enjoy the moment.”