Even in her debut film, MS Dhoni: The Untold Story (2016), actor Disha Patani’s compelling screen presence was unmissable. In her subsequent films, such as Baaghi 2 (2018), she again played a blinder. Yet, the actor doesn’t delight in watching her own films. Why, you ask? “Once I finish a film, I completely disconnect from it. I don’t like to watch myself on screen. It makes me feel very awkward so once I’ve shot it, it’s done,” says the 27-year-old actor.
The actor says she gives her “100% to every film” and then she focuses on her next, not dwelling on the status of her last film. And that way, she doesn’t get complacent even when her films do well.
“A project has to intrigue me. If I feel like, this is who I want to be in life at some point, I will do it. Every role and film comes with a certain amount of pressure but that has nothing to do with how well your last film did. You don’t know how people are going to react to a story. Sometimes, you may like the story but finally, what comes out on screen isn’t what you envisioned so you can’t always be sure that all your films will work,” Disha says.
Ask her how it was to work with a senior actor like Salman Khan in Bharat, and she says, “A lot of people told me that he has an intimidating personality. But he is so sweet, humble, funny and down to earth. He makes everyone feel comfortable. He is a family oriented person. I remember people coming to him for help. He is Santa Claus sitting on set, willing to help everyone,” she says.
Despite her films working well, Disha still feels like a newbie. The actor who hails from Bareilly, Uttar Pradesh, dropped out of college to pursue a career in films. She says, “I still feel like I am too new. I’ve only done three films and I’m still hungry for different roles. And, I want to stay hungry. I never want to reach a point where I’m content with myself…I’m not from here and I’ve had to struggle to get here, so I want to keep struggling for different roles and films now,” she says.
But being an outsider doesn’t mean she wasn’t accepted in the industry. “People have been kind and accepting of me. If people don’t like you, it has got nothing to do with you not being a star kid. If you are talented and hardworking, people accept you. It doesn’t matter where you are from. (Actor) Shah Rukh Khan was a nobody when he came to this business and look at him today,” she points out.
