AGAINST THE FLOW

Juhi Chawla has had a long and distinguished acting career that goes back to the 1980s. Having done more than a hundred films, won countless awards, and set up a production house with Shah Rukh Khan, she shows no signs of slowing down. In conversation wit

ell us about your big break in Bollywood. Did you always want to be an actress? A.

As a child, I never even imagined being in the industry. But then life gave me these extraordinary chances and I am not sure what made me take them up, but I did. And now, this is where destiny has brought me. I remem- ber my first film, Sultanat [1986] did not click. But my second film, Qayamat Se Qayamat Tak [1988], was one that caught the fancy of the audiences and became a hit. It gave me my career. It really gave me a good anchor to the film industry. The other thing that helped me remain a part of this industry for such a long time is my healthy attitude towards work.

Q. How significant was Qayamat Se Qayamat Tak to your film career? A.

I played this Rajasthani girl in Qayamat Se Qayamat Tak. That was a very special role, of an innocent young girl, which was pretty close to my personality, and I could do it with ease. The film was the foundation stone of my career.

Q. Did you face many ups and downs in the early stages of your professional life? A.

There were times in my career which could have got me to stop working. One was after my marriage. As Jay’s [Mehta] family is full of industrialists, many relatives, at one point, asked me if I would be willing to give up acting. At that point, I did think that I would have to let go of this career. But then by a twist of fate, after marriage, I still got to continue. After my children came, I had to take a break, after which I wasn’t sure if I would be accepted or would get work. But surprisingly, when I came back, I was offered films that were very different, like Jhankar Beats [2003], 3 Deewarein[ 2003] and My Brother… Nikhil [2005]. At that time advertising, too, had started to take off, so many endorse- ments came my way. I also did some lovely regional as well as National Awardwinning films. Things were moving slowly, but I did not stop. So yes, I have been fortunate, for which I am very grateful.

Q. You played a very powerful role in your 2 0 1 4 f i l m ,