I agree with dila813, first determine that it is not an antique. That is, a highly prized artifact that would decline in value if refinished.
If it is not, then a good thick paint remover will strip it fine. Apply it with an old natural bristle brush. Nylon will melt from the chemical. Put on just enough to be able to remove it in 10 minutes. It dries reasonably fast, so be ready to scrape it off when the bubbling is done. Use thick chemical resistant gloves; the junk is murder on the hands.
Use a scraper like a putty knife. Gently go with the grain and don’t bear down. You can gouge the underlying wood. Just gently take of the goo with the suspended shellac (probably varnish or lacquer) and wipe the knife off in an old disposable paint bucket.
Don’t worry about getting all of the corners and carvings. Just scrape off all of the finish you can reasonably get to. THEN...Irrespective of what the directions say, DON’T USE WATER!!!!!
Instead, use lacquer thinner on a clean natural bristle brush to wash the piece. Do this outside, or on a pile of old newspaper. You will remove the reamining paint stripper and some additional old stain and crud in the corners. Keep washing until it it clean. Beware of off-gassing of fumes and flames and all that. Wear eye protection. Don’t get it on your skin. If you hurt yourself, I’ll have to kill myself because it will be too late to kill you. Please don’t sue me, but if you do, my name is Bernie Madoff and I am in a federal jail.
Anyway, get it clean with lacquer thinner only. Then wipe it down with a clean rag. Let it dry. Check to see if you even need to sand it. Seriously, I have done hundreds of pieces without sanding because the lacquer thinner will not raise the grain.
If necessary, sand with 200 or higher grit wet-or-dry, but do it dry. Then, choose a nice stain. If it needs “filling”, I cannot recommend a filler and hate filled wood. But, some will do it. I like the gelled stains because they don’t have sealers and you can put on multiple coats to “tune” the color.
After the stain dries, shoot it with sealer if porous, or with lacquer if not. Minwax brush on poly finish is nice also, and more durable. You can teke it from there.
Great advice, its been so long since I stripped any wood, after stripping I would use a stain as close to the wood color that I could find...after it dries I then use Liquid Gold. don't use any paste wax, it builds up and is nasty. like you I hate filler, you can never get it to match.