Namrata Shirodkar bid adieu to act after her marriage to the Telugu superstar Mahesh Babu, thus ending a glittering career in Bollywood. A well-acknowledged actress both in Indian film circles and worldwide, she starred in Bride and Prejudice, playing the sister of Aishwarya Rai Bachchan. She was once in talks with Gurinder Chadha for Mistress of Spices. It did not work out, however.
On Bride and Prejudice, Namrata claimed she was offered many “bold roles.” She chose not to take these because she was uncomfortable with the scenes. In a 2004 interview, she told Rediff, “I am not comfortable doing such stuff. I wouldn’t exchange kisses or make love on screen. I am not desperate. Thanks to the Almighty, I come from a secure background.”
At that time, she was choosy about the projects she chose. “I get several offers but have refused most. I consciously try to ensure that my acting potential gets tapped in every project. I would love to do only one film a year. If you look at my career graph, you will see that I have never exceeded two films in a year. So why now?” she explained.
Namrata finally stopped acting in 2005. Much later, she said in an interview that Mahesh Babu did not like the idea of a working wife. In an interaction with a Telugu YouTube channel in 2022, she clarified that he meant it had nothing to do with films; even if she were sitting in a corporate job, he would have told her to leave it.
Namrata’s last film appearance was in the 2004 movie Rok Sako To Rok Lo, opposite Sunny Deol. After bidding adieu to Mumbai and the Bollywood scene, she relocated to Hyderabad and left the film industry. However, she returned as a producer for the film Major in 2022.
