Dreams & destiny

AKANKSHA SHARMA, WHO RECENTLY MADE HER BOLLYWOOD DEBUT WITH KESARI VEER, SHARES HER JOURNEY WITH SRIJANI ROY CHOWDHURY

- SRIJANI ROY CHOWDHURY

AKANKSHA SHARMA HAS JUST MADE HER BOLLYWOOD DEBUT WITH KESARI VEER AFTER WORKING IN THE SOUTH FILM INDUSTRY. THE FILM FEATURES ACTION, CGI CREATURES AND DRAMATIC SLOW-MOTION SCENES. SHE OPENLY DISCUSSES REJECTIONS, ACTION PREP AND HER LOVE FOR OM SHANTI OM. A SMALL-TOWN GIRL FROM BAHADURGARH, HARYANA, SHE NEVER INITIALLY DREAMED OF BOLLYWOOD. SHE TRANSITIONED FROM MODELLING AND MUSIC VIDEOS TO SOUTH FILMS AND NOW, BOLLYWOOD.

KESARI VEER came to me during a phase when nothing seemed to be working out. I was facing back-to-back rejections. Just when I was starting to question everything, this film happened.

I'VE HAD my fair share of rejections. There were times I was shortlisted and even finalised, only to be dropped later. It messes with your head. But my mother’s constant encouragement and my own belief in the bigger picture kept me going.

BEFORE KESARI VEER, I had never done action. But I was determined to ground each scene emotionally. I trained with harnesses, did action workshops under Kevin Kumar sir, learnt archery, and even went through forest drills.