Janhvi Kapoor has the tough task of shouldering a biopic in her second feature film, Gunjan Saxena: The Kargil Girl. Assured and excited in equal measure, the actor says, above all, she is proud to breathe life into the role of the country's first woman Indian Air Force officer to go to war.
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Before the shoot began, Kapoor and debutant director Sharan Sharma visited Gunjan Saxena in Jamnagar where she was based at the time. "I had imagined her as an aggressive and tough officer. But she was gentle and warm in her demeanour," says Kapoor, over a Zoom call. "She narrated her journey of becoming an air force pilot. She made it sound so simple that I asked Sharan if there was a story to be told here. But later, I realised that she viewed it as a smooth-sailing journey because she did not count any of the obstacles as hindrances. She learnt from them and propelled ahead."
Gunjan Saxena
Ever since the trailer launched, the actor has been facing backlash on social media, with many believing that she bagged the Karan Johar production owing to her star-kid status. "Gunjan Saxena's story is about overcoming obstacles in your life, and it motivates me to do better. Despite what people are saying, I have belief in myself and my work in the film." Even as the insider-outsider debate rages on, Kapoor maintains a realistic approach. "I haven't done anything to deserve this kind of film. But you have to accept that I got it; the makers saw potential in me and wanted me. [One does not know] whether it is because of lineage, design or coincidence, but now, I have to give my best shot and justify the opportunity. I have to deliver more than what people are expecting of me."
As she looks forward to its release on Netflix on August 12, the actor reveals that father Boney Kapoor turned emotional on seeing her work in the movie. "In the moments when I question myself, especially after reading the comments on social media, dad's words come as a source of reassurance."
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