Bhumi and Samiksha Pednekar are not just sisters, but each other’s best friends, confidantes and now business partners, too. This Raksha Bandhan, as they continue their personal tradition of tying rakhis to each other, the Pednekar sisters open up about how their bond has deepened over the years — especially after losing their father at a young age. The siblings talk about how they fiercely stand by each other, even while knowing their boundaries.

Bhumi: My mom has our pictures of us tying rakhis from the time when we were little kids. Over the years, the meaning of the ritual has changed for us. At its core, Raksha Bandhan for us is all about supporting your sibling, protecting them and just being there for each other.

Samiksha: Rakhi would start 10 days before the festival. We would go rakhi shopping and send rakhis via post to our cousin brothers. In fact, to this date, we do that.

Bhumi: Through the years, we met some incredible people who are now our rakhi brothers. I have so many rakhi brothers. It just happens naturally sometimes that you meet some people, and they feel like family. Nikhil Shetty, who I bonded with during my initial years as an actor, is my rakhi brother. He was Shanoo Sharma’s (casting director) rakhi brother and that’s how I met him. He’s one of the strongest people I know, and he’s supported me so much. I lost my father, and he just took on that role so beautifully in my life.

Samiksha: When dad passed away, Bhumi transformed so quickly. She took over my pain. She took over the responsibility of the house. I really felt that protection.

Bhumi: It just happened very organically. It was the correct thing for me to do for my family. We all stood up for each other. We all had our days and our moments. That’s what a family unit does. You stand up for each other when the other person is falling. To date, the only person who truly, even emotionally, protects me from the world is my sister. Nobody can say anything about me in front of Samiksha. She can go up against the world for me. Now, we are just not sisters, we are co-founders of a venture we started. Without defining boundaries, we have figured out each other’s boundaries. On a lighter note, the beauty of our relationship is that we fight every five minutes. They might look like fights to the world, but to us, it is a way of communication (laughs).

Samiksha: When she became an actor, social media was new. Somewhere in the middle of her career, it picked up, and the trolls came about. I would go on their page, report and even comment back. Bhumi always told me not to engage with the trolls, but then how do you not engage when you see something like that? I would engage without telling her.

Samiksha: Bhumi would be Jaadu (Koi… Mil Gaya) because she’s magical.

Bhumi: She’s quite fiery… I would say Damini.

Bhumi: If I became Samiksha, then I would be a lot more disciplined.

Samiksha: If I were Bhumi, then I would have better style!

Bhumi: Oh my God… this answer is my best rakhi gift (laughs).

Actor Bhumi Pednekar might shine in the spotlight, but for her baby sister, Samiksha Pednekar, she will always be “my sister first”. Samiksha reflects, “Growing up, Bhumi was my idol. I wanted to do everything she was doing and followed her around during school. She’s always been my North Star.”

Ahead of Raksha Bandhan, Bhumi adds, “For us, it’s about supporting and protecting each other, not bound by gender. We truly personify that spirit.”

Despite their striking resemblance, the sisters are not convinced they look alike. Bhumi admits, “We never thought we looked alike. It’s a recent phenomenon that happens daily now. We’ve accepted it, but we don’t see it ourselves.”

Samiksha adds, “When we travel internationally, people often mistake me for Bhumi. Sometimes, I just go along with it.” While they support each other, they also have their quirks. Samiksha teases, “Bhumi is terrible with maps. When she’s navigating, we never reach our destination.”

Bhumi counters, “I’m punctual, and she’s not. Her ‘five minutes’ often turn into hours.” Lastly, Samiksha sums up: “We can have a whole conversation with just a look.”

Bhumi Pednekar and sister Samiksha are a riot together. They resemble each other, have similar values, love glamming up and travelling together, but the sisters who share an unbreakable bond have distinct personalities. On Siblings Day, the feisty and fun Pednekar girls pose for an exclusive photoshoot with us and talk about their fights, feelings and how they can’t imagine a life without the other. Excerpts…

Bhumi: Samiksha is three-and-a-half years younger than me. I was extremely excited about welcoming a sibling, and I was always very maternal towards her. We have been inseparable since the beginning. We also had common friends in school. Our equation has evolved a lot over the years. It has gone from me being her elder sister to us being friends, and now business partners.

Samiksha: Bhumi is my best friend, older sister, mom, my grandmom... she means everything to me. As kids, we would fight over the TV remote, make-up and clothes. But make-up is also that one thing which we would bond over as we both loved glamming up from an early age.

Samiksha: It was, of course, Bhumi!

Bhumi: Mom would keep telling Samiksha, 'You are in this world because I wanted Bhumi to have a sibling'. This is my mom’s favourite line, and she thinks it is a very sweet thing to say (laughs).

Samiksha: I tell mom that she can’t keep saying that, because that can’t be the purpose of my life (laughs).

Samiksha: Bhumi made my life easy. She fought the battles, so I could follow in her footsteps.

Bhumi: While growing up, I was more idealistic, while Samiksha was a tornado. She was a troublemaker and a rebel. She is still naughty and has a lot of fire in her. She is very headstrong, while I am the softer one. We are kind of yin and yang. Samiksha has studied and practised law. She has surprised us. From being a backbencher, to a gold medallist lawyer to switching careers overnight and excelling in it - that’s something that I draw a lot of inspiration from.

Samiksha: I see her films and feel that I can never be an actor as good as her, so I rather not try it. Being an actor requires a lot of talent, resilience and hard work, and not everyone is cut out for that.

Bhumi: I did ask Samiksha to try her hand at acting because at one point people reached out to me to ask if my sister is interested in it. However, Samiksha always had a lot of clarity of thought. We want to leave behind a larger legacy of what we do individually and what we do together. We both have our individual careers – I am an actor and she does content creation. Together, we are in the process of creating something larger and impactful.

Bhumi: Our vision is to continue living together.

Samiksha: I guess we’ll have to find ghar jamais (laughs).

Bhumi: On a serious note, we keep taking about the fact that at some point there will be other people in our lives and our family will grow. But I hope, we never have any physical distance between us. I can’t imagine Samiksha moving to a different city. I would just crumble.

Samiksha: I can’t imagine a life without Bhumi.

Bhumi: Karisma Kapoor and Kareena Kapoor Khan. I see them and I feel… I know this relation. I know this energy. They are always together. They have common friends and are like a single unit, just like us.

"Travelling means re-educating myself. It is decompressing and relaxing,” says Bhumi Pednekar who’s back to the bay after a week-long trip in Australia. It’s a country she loves visiting and this was her third visit. What made her trip even better is that she had her sister Samiksha for company – and together, they are a cool travel jodi.

While during her earlier trips to Oz, Bhumi covered the Gold Coast and Sydney, this time around she explored Melbourne.

“If you are a foodie, then there can’t be any other better place than Melbourne. It truly has some of the best food to offer. Food is always one of the highlights when Samiksha and I travel together, and our days are usually planned around our meals, so this really completed our trip. This time, I really enjoyed binging at this pizzeria which is rated the fourth best pizzeria in the world,” she says.

Talking about what else she did in Australia, Bhumi says, “The coast and the water is just so beautiful. I am a beach baby and I love going into the water there. The wildlife is also so different from what we have around our parts of the world, like the koalas, kangaroos and even marine life. This place is a heaven for anybody who loves animals, wildlife and food!”

Another interesting addition to her itinerary was a visit to an art gallery. Bhumi says, “At the gallery, we saw some beautiful pieces by Picasso. I learned that he also made sculptures, and I loved seeing those. There was an entire area dedicated to female Australian artistes, and you could just see how female energy would transition.”

My sister Samiksha is my favourite travel buddy. We have literally seen the world together. We have travelled together ever since we were kids. From London to Paris, Canada to Dubai, we have travelled across Europe and also in India

Bhumi says, “It is fun meeting people from different cultures because when I travel, I love living the local life, eating local cuisine and going to local markets. I also love walking around. I feel when you are walking on the streets is when you learn the most about the place. I learn a lot about life when I travel.”

“The one place I do want to go to is Japan. It’s at the top of my travel list. I can’t wait to do that trip with my sister.”

They laugh, they cry, they fight but hug it out — the bond siblings share is unlike any other. Such is also the case for actor Bhumi Pednekar, 33, and her sister, lawyer Samiksha Pednekar, 30. Often seen setting #siblinggoals, it wouldn’t be wrong to say they wear their sisterhood proudly on their sleeves. Today, on Siblings Day, they get candid about their bond, being each other’s biggest cheerleader and more. Excerpts:

Samiksha: We celebrate each other every day. But, it’s good to have this one day where you can say out loud how much you love your sibling.

Bhumi: Every day is a celebration with a sibling. But yes, having one day where you can just go all out is very special.

Bhumi: We have always been extremely close. Samiksha is my soulmate in so many ways. When we were young, we would fight over the silliest of things, like the [TV] remote, a spot on the table both of us want to sit at, clothes, etc. We still fight about the same things, minus the remote! But, we make up in minutes, because we can’t stay without each other. Today, we see our careers together, as business partners. We want to leave behind a legacy as the Pednekar sisters.

Samiksha: Bhumi is a parent and a best friend. She has played such an important part in me becoming the person I am today.

Bhumi: Samiksha has always been a naughty child. She is feisty, I’m the calm one. She is someone who can put herself out there, confidently.

Samiksha: The confidence is because I have a strong support system. It gives me the courage to do all the crazy stuff I do. If I fall, I have my mum and sister to hold me. I am not naughty, they make me naughty (laughs).

Samiksha: I am more protective of Bhumi than she is of me. If I see some random [bad] comment on her Instagram post, I go to that person’s page and report them, even if they have no followers or posts.

Bhumi: As an elder sibling, the way I look out for Samiksha is a little different. She’s like my child, though our age gap isn’t a lot. She is like an organ in my body.

Samiksha: I am her heart!

Bhumi: (Laughs) Maybe one day, there will be a reality show called Keeping up with the Pednekar sisters!