I'd have taken more time if it wasn't for Riteish, Genelia on 10-year sabbatical from screen

Actor Genelia Deshmukh says her decade-long break from showbiz helped her breathe life into the character of Shravani from her latest film release Ved, which marks the directorial debut of her husband-actor Riteish Deshmukh.

While she appeared in cameos through the years in Hindi films such as Jai Ho and Force 2, Marathi movie "Ved" is her full-fledged role since the 2012 Telugu title Naa Ishtam.

The 35-year-old actor said the unplanned hiatus added layers to Shravani, an Indian Railways employee who is in love with her childhood crush and now her alcoholic husband Satya (Riteish). Satya, on the other hand, is pining for his former girlfriend Nisha (Jiya Shankar).

The 10-year break gave me a chance to do other things in life, be a homemaker, to have children with my husband. Today, I feel nothing was designed or planned. But when I look at it, it’s also a homemaker’s character, and I think it helped. As an actor, I take things from life, be it mine or someone else’s. If I wasn’t a homemaker or wife, I would never have been able to play Shravani’s character, Genelia said.

During these 10 years, filmmakers approached her with offers but she thought it wasn’t the right time to get back on set, said the actor, whose film credits include Masti, Bommarillu, Urumi, and Jaane Tu Ya Jaane Na.

There were quite a few films, which I thought wasn’t the right time for me. Honestly, I’d have taken a lot more time if it wasn’t for Riteish. He said that Now it’s time to get back to doing what you’re good at and what you like doing.