The Shrivastav household in Kairee: Rishta Khatta Meetha is ruled with a tight fist by Imarti Devi, the matriarch of the house. Imarti Devi may have had to make pickles and papads as a source of livelihood when her husband left, but in real life, Hema Singh, who plays Imarti Devi, is actually a professor!

Hema Singh is not only a theatre veteran, having acted in numerous plays, she is also a professor at the National School of drama where she teaches acting and voice modulation to aspiring actors.

But in spite of her acting prowess, Hema finds acting for TV a completely different ball game. She observes, “For theatre we had a lot of rehearsals so that we wouldn’t goof up on stage. On TV, there is not a lot of emphasis on rehearsals as we have a lot of retakes and the best shots are chosen.”

This is not just an observation as Hema plans to compile all her TV experiences as a study and use it to teach her students. Hema says, “I maintain a diary and write out all my acting experiences in it. I am on a two year leave from NSD and when I get back, I will be equipped to teach my students about the nuances of TV actiong too.’’

So there you go. Appearances are truly deceptive. The not-so-educated Imarti Devi on screen is actually a highly qualified professor in real life. And she’s not only learning the ropes of acting, she’s also planning to teach others as well.

Lets hope her students benefit from her experience in Kairee: Rishta Khatta Meetha too.