Bhumi Pednekar’s social media feed is full of pictures of her with her lookalike sister Samiksha. In an exclusive interview with ETimes, Bhumi opened up about her beloved sibling, choice of films, dealing with negativity on social media, and her journey so far. Excerpts…
Has it been a conscious decision to pick roles that speak strongly for women?
It has 100 per cent been a conscious choice. Our cinema brings about a change in the way people think. The core job of a film is to entertain, no doubt. You have to enjoy what you are seeing. But you have to also give the audience something to take back home. I feel cinema is one of the most powerful mediums and it has to make an impact. So, it comes naturally to me and it is also something that I look out for.
How close are you to your sister Samiksha?
I think our pictures on social media do all the talking. We are very thick. Contrary to what many think, we are not twins. We are sisters, and, according to some people, we look very similar, though we don’t think so. But she is my best friend and as we are growing up, I feel our relationship is just growing thicker.
How do you deal with negativity and trolls?
Honestly, I have made my peace with it. I have realised that when people are appreciating you, there is going to be some negativity as well. That is the way it has been, even before social media existed. I truly avoid reading anything bad, not even the comments. I feel it has become really toxic now. But I feel fortunate to have a very loyal fan base. I follow most of my fan accounts and they are my constant dose of positivity. They kind of dim the negativity that is thrown my way.
How do you look back at your journey so far?
I look back at it with a lot of gratitude. I feel I am very lucky that these films came my way. ‘Badhaai Do’ will be my 11th film. In the last six years, I have tried touching upon as many colours of the spectrum as possible. I believe I have a long career ahead. The roles that have come my way have been so diverse that it has been very gratifying for me, as an actor. I really hope the journey continues exactly like this; there is nothing that I would like to change. Hits and misses are a part of life. I am fortunate for every experience that I have had so far.
