Actress Aakanksha Singh, who initially rose to fame with her television show Na Bole Tum Na Maine Kuch Kaha, is on the path to making her own niche on the big screen. The actress, who has starred alongside several biggies including Ajay Devgn, Amitabh Bachchan, Aadhi Pinisetty, and Kichcha Sudeep, speaks to The Pioneer’s Tejal Sinha about her inspiring journey, choosing a not-so-easy path, her upcoming projects, and more.
Looking at the entertainment industry as a whole, we have actors who wish to do as many projects as they can, and then there are actors who believe in the concept that ‘slow and steady wins the race’. No doubt, they are all really great actors in their own ways. But today, many actors believe that taking their time and studying will get them where they want to go. And Aakanksha Singh is one of them too! Well, that’s what she believes in, and so does her journey.
Though throughout her journey she’s had her own ups and downs, she’s always been someone who has waited for the projects that she’d like to do. While initially in her career graph, she played the character of a widow in Na Bole Tum Na Maine Kuch Kaha, today, it surely would be safe to say that she has created her own niche in the market with her project. Be it in Hindi, down South, or with television commercials, she’s been a legit known face. “While the process, journey, and pace have been slow, I’m just working towards it and enjoying the process,” shared Aakanksha, who made her Tollywood debut with Malli Raava, opposite Sumanth.
Also, the film was her first project in the lead role, mind you! A North Indian, but let us tell you, she’s gracefully enraptured hearts down south so well, and she wishes to do even a Malayalam project. “I have heard that the language is difficult, but I would love to do a project in Malayalam because their content is really great, and when there is a good project, language shouldn’t be a barrier. It’s a great pleasure for me to tell you that whatever projects I have done down south, I am really proud of them.
I never wanted to be there just for the sake of it. I always choose roles that satisfy me as an actor and add great value to the film. I enjoy working in different languages; I enjoy the process of learning the language; and the people with whom I have worked have been very kind and generous,” the gorgeous lady added.
She’s been one of those who doesn’t confine herself to doing a project just for the sake of it. She has always moulded her skills into portraying different characters. But one character that we would love to watch her play is the glam doll, just like she is in real life. Gorgeous diva! To this, she quickly gushed,“I don’t have any apprehension about doing glamorous roles. I would love to do it.
If the story is nice and I have a character to portray, I would love to do it, but why it hasn’t come to me, I really don’t know. You should ask the people who are approaching me with the character (we laugh out loud). I hope somebody sees me in that sense and casts me in that glam quotient role, and at the same time, I’ll enjoy what I am doing. No complaints.”
Well, one aspect that really revolves around an actor is being typecast for a certain role. And no doubt, she faced it too. But she chose to wait and explore the rest rather than do it just for money or survival. While she took her debut television project, Na Bole Tum Na Maine Kuch Kaha, as an opportunity since it was something apart from the regular Saas Bahu daily soap, she later chose to take some time out and work on projects that show her in a different light.
Later, after her stint in Gulmohar Grand, she was all set to transition to a whole new world, the Filmy World. Though it was a short role but a remarkable one, Aakanksha played the character of Kiran Kakkar, Alia Bhatt’s best friend, in Badrinath Ki Dulhania. An opportunity again, but this time it was to explore.
While she was initially confused and not really convinced by it, she looked at the pros, and she shared, “Along with being on film sets and being with such a big team, I was going to be in Singapore for 25 days (we laughed). You know, when I used to go to the airport, people used to be like, You did that film right, and I was very happy that whatever little I did in that film, people had registered that, and it was a great achievement for me as an actor. But again, the struggles didn’t end there. People used to call me the same character, and I didn’t really want to do that; I just did that for experience.”
Surely, there was no looking back for her. She went on to do several great projects, like Pailwaan in Kannada, the Tamil-Telugu bilingual project Clap, Runway 34 in Hindi, and many more. And you know what? All these projects were not only opposite huge stars of the industry, but she had a lot to put on the table, so much so that she even received a hand-written letter from the Shahenshah of Bollywood, like BIG-B himself.
Now as we talk about her being a significant part of the huge star cast project, well, she’s again coming up with a project on Jio Cinema titled Ranneti: Balakot & Beyond, starring alongside Jimmy Shergill, Lara Dutta, Prasanna, and Ashutosh Rana, among the rest.
And so, how could we miss out on bringing you some exclusive details about the project? Let’s hear from Aakanksha herself on how she got on board for the project: “So when they approached me for this particular character, I met the director, Santosh Singh. This is inspired by true events, and when you talk about inspiration taken from true events, there is the essence of different people who were not at the forefront, I would say, but they were there. So it’s one of the characters that you will see in the show.
My character’s name is Richa, and she is a woman of today’s time. She knows what she is doing in terms of taking any decision or taking a stand, and she is very strong. I don’t know how much I can say, but I would sum it up by saying it is a very strong character, and they are real people inspired in the show, and so is my character.”
While she wishes that people love her character Richa once they see her on-screen, she also goes on to reveal the most challenging part, which was, “There are these professional terms that people like in the Indian Air Force, Navy, and Army use.
When I was shooting for the show, I had a really tough time knowing about the terms and technicalities of it. Being familiar with the terms and comfortable with them was something that I really worked on. I wish and hope that people love Richa after seeing the show, and I am really proud of this character.”
Now as we head towards the end of the interview, the Parampara actress, who is eagerly waiting for Parampara season 3 to be shot with the series being a hit, shared, “In Hindi, I still consider myself a newcomer since I did not work that much in Hindi, but yeah, I am waiting for the right opportunity.Talking about the South project, there is a film that I am doing right now called Shashtipoorthi. It is a family drama, and it’s about the parents getting married again after completing 60 years, so it’s a ritual down south, a very different concept. So, I am working on that and finished working on a series in Telugu.”
