Creating a space of her own
The actress talks about her move to the OTT platform and about being an outsider in Bollywood
The outspoken Hina Khan has always liked to keep it real. Having made quite the presence on the television platform, she made waves when she starred in Vikram Bhatt’s Hacked, which released in February this year. She is now busy with some films and shows on OTT platforms.
The actress speaks about her journey so far, and the ‘outsider debate’, which raised its head after the unfortunate and untimely death of Sushant Singh Rajput. Hina is awaiting the release of Unlock, premiering on Zee5. The actress is quite excited. “Unlock is a suspense film based on the dark web, about an ambitious girl who downloads an app and gets into this space, which takes her on a rollercoaster ride into many other situations. Such a subject has been attempted in the Indian OTT space for the first time,” she adds.
Talking about the preparation that went into the role, Hina admits that she had to work very hard. She is grateful to her director Debatma Mandal for helping her achieve the perfection in her performance. “I’ve always been a director’s actor, who enjoys following my directors’ guidelines. So, when Debatma wanted me to have the ‘look’ unlike any other character I have yet, we began working on how my character in the film, Suhani, should look. We tried fringes on my face, and added the layers needed to make me look like the go-getter and ambitious person Suhani is,” she adds.
REEL AND REAL-LIFE CHALLENGES
Shop talk aside, we wonder if she considers herself as ambitious in real life. “I am satisfied, but I always look forward to moving ahead in life because I know I can do more,” she says. “Sometimes, though, I am disheartened that despite how hard I work, my ‘outsider’ status in the film industry might keep me from getting the roles and films I desire — maybe those three-or-four-film deals with big production houses such as YRF and Dharma. Sadly, most us ‘outsiders’ have to keep proving themselves a million times over, which gets discouraging sometimes.”
We point out that Shahrukh Khan also belonged to the TV world before he made it big in Bollywood. “Oh yes, and so was Vidya Balan,” she says right back. “But those were different times, when actors could go out and ask for work. It was a wonderful period. Now, the world has changed and most of us are not entertained.”
PERSONALLY SPEAKING...
Hina has been dating Rocky Jaiswal for the last few years. How has that been, we ask her. Chuckling at the question, she says, “You know, when I hear people ask ‘How come Hina Khan has stuck to this guy for so many years?’ I just laugh it off. I’ve been very lucky that I found in him all the qualities I hoped to find in my soulmate. I like him for his maturity and sharp mind. I also fell for him because he is very intelligent. He is someone I feel safe with and one I know I can trust.” Just as we wonder if marriage is on the cards any time soon, she says, as if reading our minds, “I am fully focused on my career right now and we have a very stable relationship. So while marriage is bound to happen sometime, for now, it is work, work and work on my mind.”
“I am fully focused on my career right now. Marriage is bound to happen sometime, but for now, it is work, work and work on my mind.”
Sometimes I am disheartened that despite how hard I work, my ‘outsider’ status in the film industry might keep me from getting the roles and films I desire — maybe those 3-or-4-film deals with big production houses such as YRF and Dharma. Sadly, most us ‘outsiders’ have to keep proving ourselves a million times over, which gets discouraging sometimes