When Neena Gupta missed out on 'Saand Ki Aankh' due to ageism in casting: 'Film industry is a business, if you sell..'

Before the release of 'Saand Ki Aankh', starring Taapsee Pannu and Bhumi Pednekar, Neena Gupta’s tweet sparked a debate on ageism on social media. The actress had earlier spoken up about the casting choices in the film, where Taapsee and Bhumi played the roles of the shooter's grandmothers.Neena Gupta revealed she was considered for 'Saand Ki Aankh'In an interview with Hindustan Times, Neena explained that the film industry works like a business—actors are chosen based on how well they sell. The actress shared that when Anurag Kashyap announced 'Saand Ki Aankh', she called him and said she could play the role. “Film industry is a business. If you sell, you are taken into a film, if you don’t then you are not taken."Anurag told her he did want to cast older actors, but the financiers preferred younger stars. After Taapsee Pannu and Bhumi Pednekar were cast as the world’s oldest women shooters, Chandro and Prakashi Tomar, actresses Seema Pahwa and Soni Razdan also supported Neena and questioned why older women weren’t chosen for age-appropriate roles. Neena said, "when Anurag announced this film 'Saand Ki Aankh', I called him and said ‘Ye role to mai kar sakti hu, kya tum young ka kar rahe ho ya old ka kar rahe ho (I can do this role, are you tracing the younger part of their lives or the older one)?’ He said ‘I wanted to take older actors but my financers said you have to take younger girls’. So it is business – who is suited to the project is taken.”She further explained that while there are plenty of roles for younger actors, older women get very few chances. 'The Badhaai Ho' actress added that she simply wished she had been cast in 'Saand Ki Aankh' since she was the right age for the role.