Pooja Hegde On Her Success Story, Working With Salman Khan, And Plans For 2023
With her recent hit release Kisi Ka Bhai Kisi Ki Jaan, Bazaar Arabia speaks to the award-winning actor about working with the star cast, biggest challenges, and her dream co-stars…
Pooja Hegde On Her Success Story, Working With Salman Khan, And Plans For 2023
Indian actress Pooja Hegde is best known for her spectacular acting in the Indian film fraternity. She has won several awards for her outstanding performance in films Maharshi, Most Eligible Bachelor, and others, making her one of the top creatives in India and worldwide. And now the award-winning star has been in the spotlight for her latest hit release Kisi Ka Bhai Kisi Ki Jaan, starring Salman Khan, Shehnaaz Gill, and others, making it one of the most-anticipated launches of 2023.
Here, Bazaar Arabia’s Anahita Ghai speaks to Pooja Hegde about her success story and journey to becoming an actor, working with Salman Khan and her dream co-stars…
Pooja Hegde On Her Success Story, Working With Salman Khan, And Plans For 2023
Harper’s Bazaar Arabia (HBA): How was your experience shooting Kisi Ka Bhai Kisi Ki Jaan? Any memorable moments?
Pooja Hegde (PH): Oh, it was great. Overall, I think there were so many memorable moments. When we shot the song in Ladakh, it was quite a beautiful place to be. At the same time it is tough because you’re fighting a different battle, because there is a lesser oxygen in that place. So it was quite funny because every time you see a very wide shot of me where I’m on this hilltop, I’ve actually climbed there and every I remember like climbing up, then waiting, panting climbing up. It was really beautiful. And we had a great time shooting.
HBA: Did you face any challenges getting into character?
PH: No, I think I mean I have worked in Telugu films so much that it prepared me for this role in a way. Because when I went and started working in the Telugu industry, I didn’t know the language and eventually I learnt it. So now having had worked there knowing who the ‘Telugu girl’ is, what is her mannerisms are and how she behaves really helped me and I understood the world already. I had a better hold of the language, so if I needed to do something spontaneously on set in the Telugu language, I could do it. So you know, that way, the preparations, in fact, was easy. But for a film like this and working with Salman Khan, sometimes the less you prepare the better it is. It’s good to think on your feet and go with your gut.
HBA: How was it like working with Salman Khan?
PH: Yeah it was great. He used to call us for lunch and he had a tent on set and there’d be like, a whole lot of food on the table. And it was great, I think, a lot of positive energy on set overall between everybody.
HBA: How did you decide to get into acting? Especially given that you do not come from a family of actors so this was new for you.
PH: You know, I think most people pick their profession. I genuinely think that my profession has picked me. Because growing up I’ve always been such a lost child in terms of not knowing what I wanted to be what I wanted to do. I was A complete introvert, and very shy somewhere. That part of me still, you know, heart of heart, it’s still that I’m the same person.
And I kind of just like, I was a complete tomboy. And I went through life. I had decided that I needed to change this aspect about myself, you know, the stage fright and be more out there. So I signed myself up in every college activity. And in one of one the events, someone from the Miss India pageant came and saw me and said, Why don’t you take part in Miss India? And I was, like, you’re really like, Miss India? And then, and then they were like, Yeah, and I was like, okay.
So they said that you need to have a portfolio, and I had no idea what that really even meant. .And some how to cut a long story short, I ended up being a runner up at the Miss Universe India pageant. And from there, I went in to fashion and walked shows, but then I was starting to feel like, what more what’s next, like, where does this all head, and I got an offer from a film. So I decided to just do it. And once I was on set I just felt so at home, I really enjoyed the process of becoming an actor. I still remember watching my first film in the theater and to be honest, it was the closest thing to magic. It just felt so amazing and somehow my love for telling stories and making films just grew from then on.
HBA: Because you have worked in the South as well as Bollywood, what would you say are the biggest similarities and differences?
PH: If you ask me, I just think that it’s the same, you know, only the language changes. But it really does depend on the director. I think the director sets the tone of the film, not the region or the language. And so it’s been sometimes similar, or sometimes vastly different experiences, but that’s mainly because of the particular film and not really the process, the process of filmmaking is pretty much the same.
HBA: What are your thoughts on OTT and Netflix Originals series, is this something you will be working on soon?
PH: Well, let’s hope so I think for me, you know, I’m just concentrating on telling stories more than anything. And if the right platform to tell that particular story is an OTT show or film then of course, its great. It’s really provided a lot more job opportunities, and I would love to be part of something and I think this year, you’re gonna see me in something for sure.
HBA: In terms of your style, how would you describe your fashion sense?
PH: I think I’m more like a classic, over trendy kind of person, in my personal style. At the same time, I am young, I like to experiment and see if that is me. I think fashion can be so empowering, because it’s like wearing a uniform. You can dress up you can dress down you can you can help make yourself feel more confident.
HBA: Which character have you played that you would say has the closest to your real self or sense of style?
PH: Yeah, a film called Aravinda Sametha, which I did with Jr. NTR. And the character pretty much just like me, because I love my cargo pants. And that was pretty much me.
HBA: Who are you a fan of? Any dream co-stars?
PH: There are so many. I think someone like Scarlett Johansson has made some really interesting choices for me, because she’s been part of a lot of commercially big films, and she has her Black Widow and all of that happening and the Avengers, but at the same time she’s done some of my favorite films like Lost in Translation and Marriage Story. Even Reese Witherspoon really, I find her really inspiring in terms of the content that she’s making and the decisions that she’s taking at her this her you know, her age and what kind of roles she’s creating for women. I love Zendaya too. She’s so unguarded and her her real self and not you know, trying to fit in a particular mold.
HBA: And last question, what can your fans expect from you this year?
PH: I think they’re gonna see me experiment a lot and take some vigorous you know, at this point in my career, but I hope it pays off because I’m just trying to, you know, give them something new and something different. And they also see me in three languages this year.