Alaya: People get ‘launches’ in Bollywood, I’ve got a ‘break’
I like my independence and making my own choices. I am sure I will make a lot of mistakes, I have made a lot of them, but they are mine to learn from.
ALAYA F ACTOR
Masala romantic comedy — this is pretty much the preferred trope for any star kid when making their debut. Such films give them a chance to showcase every histrionic talent they possess — act, dance, show off their glamorous and emotional sides — in short, everything.
Cut to 2020, when Alaya F, daughter of actor Pooja Bedi and granddaughter of Kabir Bedi, is making her debut with a film which will see her minus any stereotype. She plays a pregnant 21-year-old in Jawaani Jaaneman, with Saif Ali Khan playing her father! “A lot of people get ‘launches’. For me, this was a ‘break’,” says Alaya when we ask why she didn’t go for a conventional Hindi film.
“I did auditions and tests for lots of films. This one worked out because I happened to fit into it perfectly. I am grateful! It’s unconventional, and I want to do that for the rest of my career — conventional, unconventional, all of it. People are asking me, ‘What type of films do you want to do?’ I can never answer it,” says Alaya.
Did she discuss Jawaani Jaaneman with her mum after she bagged it? “I told her about it like I told everybody else,” she quips, “I took everyone’s opinion, right from mom, to my manager, everyone said it’s a great film. I went with my gut feeling and had no doubts.”
The way would have been easier for her if she had used her connections, so it’s surprising that she didn’t do so. Asked why, she tells us, “I don’t know… I always wanted it to be my own thing. When you get people involved, you are obligated to take their opinions. My mum hasn’t been to a single set, even a photoshoot of mine. I like my independence and making my own choices. I am sure I will make a lot of mistakes, I have made a lot of them, but they are mine to learn from.”
At best, she says her mother and grandfather would get her meetings with makers to show them her work, portfolio and acting reel. “They would say, ‘You have great potential, very good’, but that was about it, I never heard from them again. That was more to meet people in the industry. But getting my film and everything was through my agency,” Alaya asserts.