Of late, several social media influencers have forayed into acting — be it Prajakta Koli in JugJuggJeeyo (2022), Mismatched, Viraj Ghelani in Govinda Naam Mera (2022), Kusha Kapila in Selfiee, Masaba Masaba season 2 — to name a few. But, this new and emerging practice of casting, actor Aahana S Kumra feels, is only fair if people are hired for their merit and not their follower count.

“Many shows that are now coming on big streaming platforms star Instagram influencers. How many of them are really acting? Influencers are influxing the acting space,” the actor shares.

The 37-year-old finds it “heartbreaking” to see young and aspiring actors losing out on work due to this trend: “There are kids doing theatre, who come to me to discuss this [issue]. It is heartbreaking to listen to them say they are not being hired because they don’t have Insta followers... The whole space is becoming so noisy. In the West, you get hired for talent, not because you are an influencer. This has become a constant conversation on every set today. It has left actors perplexed, they just don’t know what to do.”

But Kumra, who has carved a place for herself in the industry with projects such as Inside Edge and Call My Agent: Bollywood, believes in taking matters into her own hands. “That is what has pushed me to become a writer. I want to make my [own] stuff. I hope to continue writing stories and make content. At the moment, what I am writing is still in process, but it is turning into a good thing. I hope to talk about it soon,” she reveals.

When it comes to her acting projects, Kumra has decided to go with the flow. “Now, I want to venture into new spaces because it’s very easy to typecast actors. It’s nice to be able to break out of that mould and find a new world. There are certain things in the pipeline, which I will share once they are formalized,” she wraps up.