Hollywood, Bollywood and everything in between

Avantika Vandanapu

In the past, Avantika Vandanapu visited India as a child actor when she shot for Telugu films, including Brahmotsavam (2016) and Premam (2016). But her latest trip to the country is special. In a way, it reminds her of the journey she has made as an artiste. "It's surreal [how life has] come full circle, from my roots as a child actor here to now leading a Hindi series like Big Girls Don't Cry. This homecoming feels like a dream come true," she says.

Vandanapu plays Leah Joseph, one of the lead characters in the Prime Video offering that is set in an all-girls' boarding school. The actor spent the last two weeks in Mumbai promoting the series, and fell in love with the city. "I loved the hustle culture. I would love to come back and spend more time discovering the city because I always hear so much about its hidden gems. I was around avid film lovers, and will take back the amazing conversations I had about cinema." She also squeezed in a three-day trip to Kashmir with her family.

Now that she has made her Hindi debut, will it be a balancing act of Hollywood and Bollywood for the Spin (2021) and Mean Girls actor? She hopes so. To her, starring in an Indian production means the world. "Since childhood, I've been watching Yash Chopra films like Chandni [1989], Darr [1993] and Veer-Zaara [2004]. I fell in love with Indian cinema, its colour and emotions, and developed the desire to work in Bollywood films. I don't want to limit myself by my geographical location. In the current digital age, cinema is not restricted by language and regions, and gives me an opportunity to be a global actor."