Stuck with u

Sisters Bhumi and Samiksha Pednekar are riding out quarantine together, and are learning new things about each other along the way

- BARRY RODGERS

“It feels strangely comforting and discomforting to have all this time on your hands for yourself and your family, and yet do so little these days,” says actor Bhumi Pednekar, five minutes into our telephonic interview for Grazia’s June digital issue, who along with her sister, Samiksha, styled and shot a bunch of images that perfectly reflect the sisters’ close bond. “We couldn’t pass up the opportunity to do something fun together, for the first time. It wasn’t easy though, I’m so used to riding solo on shoots; so, having to think about someone else in your frame, especially someone as close as Samiksha, was challenging. But I’m glad we did this,” says the Saand Ki Aankh actor. In a pre-COVID world, the Pednekars would have been ensconced in their own bubbles. Bhumi would have been flitting from city to city for shoots, and in general, keeping up with the frenetic pace of life on set. Samiksha, on the other hand, would have been putting in long hours as a corporate lawyer (“I still work odd hours, that’s something that hasn’t changed.”) However, the government-imposed lockdown presented the sisters with a rare opportunity to spend downtime together. “We’ve more than made up for lost time. I would rarely see Samiksha or my mum for that matter, given our hectic schedules. It’s almost as if I had disconnected from them,” says Bhumi, who’s mother, Sumitra, would also travel extensively for social work, before lockdown.