From Stage to Stream: Ssujata Rangrangili Triumphs, and Ssujata Mehta Seeks Soulful Scripts on OTT
From Stage to Stream: Ssujata Rangrangili Triumphs, and Ssujata Mehta Seeks Soulful Scripts on OTT
A bare stage. A single performer. And yet, the air is electric.
In her solo theatrical triumph Ssujata Rangrangili, veteran actress Ssujata Mehta returns to her most sacred space — the stage — with a performance that is equal parts fire and fragility. The one-act play, stitched with memory, humour, defiance, and truth, has emerged as a quiet revolution in theatre circles. There are no special effects here, only special energy — and the audience feels it in every breath.
But then, Ssujata Mehta has never needed props to shine. From her breakthrough role in Pratighaat with Nana Patekar to unforgettable performances in Pratigyabadhh with Mithoon Chakraborty, Dhartiputra with Mamooty, Jayaprada and Farah, Jung with Aditya Panscholi, Mithoon Chakraborty and Ajay Devgan, Meri Jung with Jeetendra, Yateem with Sunny Deol avd Farah, Tyagi with Rajnikant and Shakti Kapoor, Gunaah with Sunny Deol and Dimple Kapadia, Gunehgar Kaun with Raj Babbar and Paresh Rawal, Sadhana with Rishi Kapoor and Raj Babbar, Dhaad with KK Menon, Raghubir Yadav and Sendeep Kulkarni, Gunahon Ka Devta with Mithoon Chakraborty, Aditya Panscholi and Danny Denzongpa, Judge Mujrim with Jeetendra, Anmol with Rishi Kapoor, Teen Deewarein with Naseeruddin Shah and Jackie Shroff, Kanwarlal with Jeetendra and Raj Babbar, television shows Andaz, Kya Hoga Nimmo Ka, Shrikant, she has always chosen roles with backbone — women who burn, break, and rise. She became a voice for layered female characters long before the industry knew how to write them.
Yet for Ssujata, theatre has always been her heartbeat. In Chitkar, she portrayed a woman grappling with paranoid schizophrenia — a soul-shattering performance that ran for over 800 shows across the world. With each new role, she reminded audiences that real acting doesn’t entertain — it transforms.
Ssujata Rangrangili continues that legacy. As she shapeshifts through shades of womanhood in this one-woman play, she bares not just her craft but her courage. Critics have hailed it as a masterclass in control and vulnerability. For audiences, it’s a return to what art is meant to be — honest, unafraid, alive.
Now, as OTT platforms evolve into spaces for truth-telling, Ssujata Mehta is ready. “Theatre taught me presence. Cinema gave me visibility. But OTT offers depth,” she reflects. “There’s finally room for characters who breathe, bruise, and bloom.”
Her journey has never followed trends — it has followed truth. And as the world catches up to the kind of roles she’s always championed, Ssujata Mehta stands ready — not to reclaim space, but to redefine it.
Because when she performs, the lights don’t shine on her.
They shine from her.
By Sunder M
