Theatre artiste and actress Taranjit Kaur is currently seen in the ZEE5 series Shabad Reet Aur Riwaz.
Set in a Punjabi household where tradition shapes everyday life, the series explores the emotional tensions between a rigid father, an ambitious teenage son and a mother striving to hold the family together. Taranjit essays the role of the mother, a layered, resilient woman who becomes both the emotional and financial anchor of her home.
Speaking about her first reaction to the script, she shares that director Manjot approached her for the project. “The story is rooted in Punjab, which is close to my own upbringing,” she says.
Born into a Punjabi family, she felt an instant connection. What drew her most was the strength of the mother’s character. “She is traditional and religious, but also powerful. Mothers everywhere are often the balancing force, holding the family together while supporting their children’s dreams.”
To shape the role, Taranjit leaned on emotional memory. Having been in theatre since the age of 15, she credits her mother as a strong influence, calm, caring and unwaveringly supportive.
If she had to sum up the series in a sentence, she says, “It asks older generations to be empathetic towards their children’s dreams, and younger generations to find a balance between ambition and tradition.”
Trained under Neelam Mann Singh Chowdhury, theatre remains her foundation. “It gave me discipline, tools and a craft I constantly return to.” While theatre demands heightened energy for a live audience, she notes that digital performances require actors to adhere to the principle of ‘less in more’; subtle and restrained, yet equally layered. Her career took a decisive turn with the Oscar-winning German short film Raju. “It shaped my life,” she says, opening doors to meaningful cinema.
Having also appeared in films like Ankhon Dekhi and Airlift, she says the primary criteria for choosing roles is that the roles must excite her, and she closely looks at how layered and varied the characters are.
Poetry gives her voice and expression. “It allows me to reflect women’s experiences.”