The phrase "women oriented" maybe a popular word in cinema now but actor Renuka Shahane says television, for one, has always been a medium dominated by female actors - whether the content is progressive or regressive.

The 52-year-old actor, who led shows such as Mrs Madhuri Dixit and Kora Kagaz in the 1990s, says with the arrival of daily soaps, she decided to lay low. "Whether it is progressive or regressive, TV has always been a women's medium. Most of the heroes and heroines of the small screen have been women. In that sense, I have done much more TV than films. In the '80s and '90s films, women were not given meaty roles except a Sridevi once in a while. I have been privileged to get really good stuff when television was in its Golden Age. Then, I kind of took a backseat at the right time when the daily soaps took over and it changed the profile of television totally. It's still women oriented. But I look out for roles that are progressive, which is a rarity on TV," Shahane told PTI in a telephonic interview.