‘Your relationship with your child is changing every single day, ditto your relationship with your parents.’

Photograph: Kind courtesy Gul Panag/Instagram

What makes interviewing Gul Panag always interesting is that she will never duck a bouncer or play a ball quietly to the covers.

She is honest, straightforward and fearless, giving her 100 per cent to everything she does, be it running a half-marathon, flying a plane, campaigning for elections, running an enterprise or playing a character who is the polar opposite of her.

Season Two of the Amazon Prime Video series, Paatal Lok, sees her play Renu, the wife of Jaideep Ahlawat’s Inspector Hathiram Chaudhury.

Speaking to Rediff.com Senior Contributor Roshmila Bhattacharya, the actress says, “In our patriarchal society, there is a Renu in every middle-class household but we don’t realise this till she holds up the mirror.”

Not just Hathiram Chaudhary, even his wife Renu has struck a chord with the audience in Season Two of Paatal Lok. What would you attribute this growing empathy to?

Well, like an average homemaker, Renu’s life too has so far revolved around her husband, Hathiram, who is never around, and her son, Siddharth aka Siddhu, who has gone off to college, leaving her alone and lonely, grappling with the ’empty nest’ syndrome.

There was always a gap between Hathiram and her which in Season One was filled by the child.

The core of any married couple is how they raise the next generation and, in this case, since both Hathiram and Renu were on opposite ends of the spectrum, the relationship was fraught with conflict.

IMAGE: Gul Panag in Paatal Lok.

But that’s changing now, right?

Yes, they may still not be on the same page but now, we see a consensus building.

There’s a new-found maturity even in Renu who, towards the end of Season Two, is open to the idea of meeting her son’s girlfriend which signals that the relationship is evolving.

Professionally, Hathiram is still where he was in Season One but personally, the inspector has grown.

So has Renu.

After years of the family being her priority, she is finally looking inwards, asking herself, ‘But what about me? Where do I go from here?’

I guess that’s what has resonated with so many people either because they feel the same way as Renu or because they are guilty of making someone else feel that way.

In our patriarchal society, there is a Renu in every middle-class household but we don’t realise this till she holds up the mirror.

Another reason why viewers have warmed up to the big-built Haryanvi cop and his no-nonsense wife is because Hathiram and Renu’s romance is so real, so relatable.

(Laughs) Yeah, there’s that meme which has gone viral to which I get tagged frequently.

IMAGE: Gul Panag in Paatal Lok.

The one where Renu calls Hathiram in Nagaland where he is going through a difficult time and asks him how he is…

(Chuckles) He replies that now that he has heard her voice, he is fine. The admission — while romantic — is so rare for them that not knowing how to react, she asks him if his stomach is fine.

‘Gas to nahin hai?‘

(Laughs) Yes, that’s real life romance for you that has grown out of years of companionship and bonding.

That’s the beauty of Sudip’s writing, the depth and incisiveness in it that has brought even a supporting part like Renu so much love.

Does Renu’s bonding with the orphaned Guddu in Season Two mirror your relationship with your son Nihal?

When we shot Season One towards the end of 2018, my son was around eight months old and I was still grappling with the challenges of being a new mother.

He turns seven next month which means that I could bring six years of motherhood to my workplace in Season Two.

But I wasn’t trying to be the mother Gul is to Nihal when playing Renu because that would have been dishonest to the character because I am nothing like her.

But my life’s experiences did add certain elements to the performance.

Just when Renu is becoming a little more emancipated and empowered, trying to explore a space for herself by using her education to tutor little kids, Guddu is foisted on her by her husband.

It’s a responsibility she doesn’t welcome initially because it feels like an encumbrance, but then it brings back memories of Siddhu from when he was four years old.

Parenting had been a struggle then because both husband and wife were grappling with it, but now Renu realises she is missing that time with her son and wants to relive it with Guddu.

IMAGE: Gul Panag with son Nihal. Photograph: Kind courtesy Gul Panag/Instagram

Do you miss your son from when he was four years old?

I miss him even from six months ago.

He’s always been very specific about what time I will be back home every time I step out.

If I’m late, I always say sorry. Earlier, he would say, ‘It’s okay, mamma.’

(Laughs) But now, my son who is fairly articulate will ask me if the apology is ‘unequivocal’ or ‘conditional’.

Your relationship with your child is changing every single day, ditto your relationship with your parents.

Human beings are like trees, we keep growing till death cuts us down.

Sudip manages to capture this growth through the layers of his writing.

Since Delhi goes to the polls on February 5, let’s talk politics now. What made you take the plunge?

The idea of joining politics came from wanting to do the best that I could. But I realised I couldn’t do my best due to circumstances beyond my control.

First, my child was barely two-and-a-half years old when Punjab went to polls and I wanted to contribute fully to his growth.

Second, I did not have a limitless source of revenue, and to remain honest in politics, you need to have a steady source of revenue to fuel your car, to pay your mobile bills, your child’s school fees and so on. 

If you are being financed by somebody with interests, they will not just expect to recover their investment, but chances are they will try to extract three to four times more from you. Therein lies the fundamental problem that leads to corruption.

But you raised funds publicly?

Yes, I fought my campaign with what was allocated by the Election Commission of India.

Photograph: Kind courtesy Gul Panag/Instagram

How do politicians fund themselves?

The way to encourage honest politicians is to allow them to pursue their core profession along with politics till they are elected, the way they do in the West.

They, of course, choose to take a pay cut once they are elected.

Should actors continue to act once elected?

If lawyers like Kapil Sibal, P Chidambaram and Arun Jaitley could continue to practise even after they are elected, why shouldn’t actors?

Kangana (Ranaut) continues to act, direct and produce films even after becoming an MP.

But it’s different when you become a minister like Smriti Irani was or like Kapil Sibal was or like Dr Mahesh Sharma was because that’s a fulltime job.

IMAGE: Gul Panag at a farmers protest rally in Punjab. Photograph: Kind courtesy Gul Panag/Instagram

You are no longer with the Aam Aadmi Party, right?

Yes. Even though I led the Aam Aadmi Party’s campaign in Chandigarh during the 2014 elections, I have not been with the party since 2021.

I did not announce it at a press conference or make a big noise about it because I did not want to exercise any leverage from my resignation.

Since I was not able to do my best in the circumstances, I felt I must recalibrate and do something else.

Any possibility of getting back into active politics in the future?

Yes. I remain committed to my goal of serving in public life but I’m flexible in my approach.

I’ll wait till circumstances support me and enable me to do the best I can without being dishonest to myself or to others.