Eight years after her debut in Shuddh Desi Romance, Vaani Kapoor got her breakthrough role recently with Abhishek Kapoor’s Chandigarh Kare Aashiqui, where she played a trans girl opposite Ayushmann Khurrana. I found her character Maanvi to be very genuine, and a worthy representative of the trans community when it comes to commercial cinema, that has rarely explored this community before.
However, eight years is a long wait for getting the recognition and appreciation that every actor craves for. When I asked Vaani about how was it dealing with this wait, the actress straightaway said she has no regrets whatsoever.
She said:
“I think I just didn’t want to settle for something that at the end of the day would have not been worth it. I was too scared or maybe skeptical of choosing a different path where my focus would have been money or fame. As actresses, you are told about your shelf life and told to do as many films as you can and be visible. But I wanted filmmakers like Abhishek Kapoor, Karan Malhotra and Aditya Chopra to consider me for their films, which is why I was willing to let go of XYZ number of films, just so that I can work with these credible people.”
Vaani adds:
“I know we all are striving to run the ladder but if I wasn’t getting the kinds of films I wanted, I was willing to wait it out. It wasn’t an easy choice. It was very hard sitting patiently back at home, not making the money you possibly can, not getting the popularity where you are so visible that every filmmaker has you on the top of their list. It’s a conscious choice and a decision I took, and I’m happy today. Maybe that’s why I got a Chandigarh Kare Aashiqui.”
The actress insists that she always had the belief in herself that she would eventually make it on her talent, but in this day and age, there is an army of people working behind an artist. So, having to convince them that you want to wait for something, might not have been the easiest thing and Vaani agrees.
She says:
“I mean, sometimes your luck might not favour you. But I feel that if you have self-belief, potential and you know that you have it in you, then these are small sacrifices. I am someone who doesn’t even get papped that regularly because I feel that is not what is exciting for me. I’m not saying that is wrong, or this is right, but I’m a private person. I like that my private life is there and I want to be popular for the right things. I want to be popular for my films or for my work. Everybody charts a different course in this industry and this is mine.”
It feels great to see Vaani’s talent and potential finally getting recognised. It mustn’t have been easy for her to take up a role, for which you don’t have any reference point on screen as this community is rarely represented in films. But to do it this credibly and genuinely is what made me connect to her. There’s a bright future ahead for Vaani, I am sure of that, and I can’t wait to see her walk into it.