15 Years of Rock On EXCLUSIVE: “I heard that the role of Debbie was REJECTED by a lot of actresses and I wonder why” – Shahana Goswami

By Fenil Seta -

August 29, 2023 - 10:54 AM IST

The musical entertainer, Rock On (2008), completed 15 years on August 29. The film is remembered for its songs, Farhan Akhtar’s debut and Arjun Kapoor’s National Award-winning performance. However, the film is also significant as it also made Shahana Goswami a popular name. On Rock On’s 15th anniversary, the gorgeous and talented actress spoke exclusively to Bollywood Hungama about her memories, her role and a lot more.

15 Years of Rock On EXCLUSIVE: “I heard that the role of Debbie was REJECTED by a lot of actresses and I wonder why” – Shahana Goswami

How did you bag Rock On?
Shanoo Sharma was doing the casting and she is a dear friend. I felt it was a great part because of the complexity. Then, no one used to write such complex female characters. I heard it was rejected by a lot of actresses and I wonder why.

I auditioned and this was a time when I had just 1 ½ scenes in Honeymoon Travels Pvt Ltd (2007). I didn’t expect Excel Entertainment to give me such a crucial role. That’s the beauty of the banner. They are never driven by such calculations. Hence, I was surprised when I bagged the part.

How was the experience of shooting for Rock On?
We had a blast shooting it. Everybody in the crew was under 30. There was great energy on the set. Besides Arjun Rampal, everybody in the film was new, including Farhan who was starting out as an actor.

Your character Debbie was aggressive towards Joseph (Arjun Rampal). But in a way, she was not wrong as she had seen the hardships. What kind of feedback did you get? Did people hate you?
I would say I got a lot of ‘love-hate’. I never received hate as such but I was told, ‘You were so good that we hated you’. Also, I got a different response from men and women. Women loved me as they understood the struggle while men hated me.

During the shoot, I was very young and I was thinking from my perspective that ‘Yeh character toh mujhe bhi irritating lag rahi hai’. I asked Gattu (director Abhishek Kapoor), ‘Isn’t this too much? Should we tone it down?’. He reasoned, ‘You don’t realize that people will sympathize with her as she’s right. She has sacrificed everything while he’s the selfish one’. Hence, he insisted that I should play it to the T for him to feel that pressure.

PR was not that a big thing then. I didn’t even have a personal PR. Yet, the Excel team was kind enough to put everybody on the posters. They didn’t have to. They could have just focused on the boys. And once the film was out, it was a rage. And the feedback I got made me realize that people are responsive to nuanced characters.

How did life change after Rock On?
The funny part is that before Rock On was released, I had better work. After all, I was doing Sudhir Mishra’s film (Tera Kya Hoga Johnny), Nandita Das’s film (Firaaq; 2009), Bhoomi and I had completed Ru Ba Ru (2008). Rock On released and the recession hit. Then the casting became more conservative.

You had a very small part in Rock On 2 (2011). Do you feel your character should have had more to do in the sequel?
No. It was more about the boys in the later stage of their lives. At this point, their partners were not so important. I remember telling the makers that they don’t need to show my character. But I understood that she was needed for the reprise value. I advised that she should be there only as much as required. I felt that when a character is appreciated, people will get upset if she hangs around in the sequel without contributing much.

The shoot started when I had just moved to Paris. So they added this bit that Debbie has moved to France. They even came there to shoot my portions.

Also Read: Farhan Akhtar shares a throwback picture from the sets of Rock On!!