I CONSCIOUSLY PICK DIFFERENT KINDS OF FILMS: SHRADDHA
It’s all about the numbers when you are in the film business. With so much money riding on you when you lead a film, it feels good when you deliver on the expectations. And actor Shraddha Kapoor seems to be well acquainted with that feeling.
She’s enjoying the current patch in an almost decade long career, with two consecutive hits — Saaho, and Chhichhore, which has joined the ₹150-crore club. Ecstatic at how people loved both these films, the 32year old says, “Box office numbers are a clear indication of how many people have watched the film. If those numbers are high, it means those many people saw your film, and it feels very nice. Also, when the word-of-mouth for a film is strong, that response feels good... (But), box office numbers are important.”
Shraddha knows what she’s talking about, because Bollywood has always been called a cut-throat industry. In such an environment, how does she deal with the competition?
“There is competition in every industry,” she quips, “What’s more important for me is to focus on what I do, and be the best I can be. I have my focus completely on what I need to do, to be really good at what I am doing!”
She currently has her hands full with a variety of projects. On one hand, she is doing the dance drama Street Dancer with Varun Dhawan, and she is also headlining the third instalment in the Baaghi franchise, which will have high-octane action. Asked if such variety is a conscious decision, and Shraddha says, “As an actor, I consciously pick different kind of films and roles as it excites me. There are new challenges and different kind of things that you get to do. The best part is you get to be part of such different worlds. It’s super exciting.”
She might have fully immersed herself in her work, but the every day, normal side of Shraddha comes out when she suddenly goes down the memory lane.
“I think what I miss the most about my life before becoming a public figure is the anonymity I enjoyed. I remember, before I got into films, I would be able to walk out of my house, go to the market, and do regular things, which is not possible now. I would hang out at Carter Road (in Mumbai), travel by rickshaws, go to coffee shops with friends, and have sev puri and vada pav. I miss those things,” she signs off on a nostalgic note.