I REALISED IN THE LOCKDOWN THAT I CRAVE TO BE ON THE SET
Kriti Sanon has as many as five films in hand right now, in various stages of production. While Mimi was set to release last year, its post-production work got delayed owing to the pandemic. Then there are Bachchan Pandey and Bhediya — both of which are scheduled to release in the first half of 2022. While Covid-19 and the subsequent lockdown wreaked havoc on all businesses, the actor says the situation made her realise how passionate she is about her profession.
“The one thing I realised in the past year, when we were all at home and not working
(amid the pandemic) is that I really crave to be on the set. It makes me happy. I love what I do. I get alive in front of the camera and literally forget everything,” says Sanon, who recently wrapped up the shoot of Bhediya in Arunachal Pradesh and will soon start work on a bilingual film, Adipurush. On a lighter note, she quips that her parents sometimes complain that “I don’t talk to them, because I genuinely just belong to the place I am in”.
While the 30-year-old is certainly fond of her job, there are some aspects that she finds tough to wrap her head around, especially the “judgment” public figures have to face. “This one year, I just felt people have no tolerance, and are judging others left, right and centre on anything and everything. People are always trying to find something negative. I understand that the times we are in can frustrate us, as everyone’s going through issues in their personal and professional lives,” feels the actor, adding difficult times should make us “want to be kinder to each other”.
And this constant scrutiny has now made Sanon become more conscious. “I used to be a lot freer about what I said earlier, but... I’ve become a lot more conscious of what I speak,” she admits.
The Luka Chuppi (2019) actor asserts, “People need to realise that when actors speak, their opinion is theirs, it doesn’t have to match anyone else’s. Today, free speech and hate speech have become similar, which shouldn’t be .”