Raveena Tandon made her debut with ‘Patthar Ke Phool’ opposite Salman Khan in 1991, but the years that followed were marked by a string of underperforming films. At that point, the actress was called ‘Little Miss Jinx Raveena.” In a recent interview, Raveena spoke about her journey and said how that changed and she became one of the top actresses of the 90s. The actress revealed that it was ‘Mohra’ which changed things for her. She said in an interview with The Hollywood Reporter India, “The media was very, very cruel. They called me ‘Little Miss Jinx Raveena’.” Despite the criticism, the actor never believed that the success or failure of a film rested on a single individual. “You give your 100 per cent. Sometimes it works, sometimes it doesn’t. It’s not one person’s fault,” she said.Everything changed after the release of ‘Mohra’ in 1994. Raveena remembered how producer Gulshan Rai publicly described her as a “lucky mascot,” triggering a dramatic shift in the industry’s attitude towards her. “Suddenly I was lucky,” she said. “Producers would say, ‘Just give us one shot in the film’.” Discussing the nature of female roles during the 1990s, Raveena explained that actresses were expected to prioritise glamour above all else. “You had to be glamorous. Even when you cried, you had to look pretty.”She revealed that she often admired performers like Aruna Irani, Kirron Kher and Reema Lagoo because their characters offered greater complexity. “They got to play grey,” she said.According to Raveena, her image as an actor underwent a significant transformation after ‘Shool’ released in 1999. “It changed the perception,” she said, noting that the film helped audiences and filmmakers look beyond her glamorous screen persona.The actor also challenged the notion that the Hindi film industry was warmer or more connected in earlier decades. “It’s not corporatisation. It’s technology,” she said.Recalling the pre-vanity van era, Raveena said film sets naturally encouraged stronger bonds because actors and technicians spent most of their time together. “We had no choice but to sit together. We’d be in jungles, deserts… just chairs and tents. Now, the minute the shot is over, everyone goes to their van. Someone’s on Instagram, someone’s watching something.”
