As told to Avinash Lohana (MUMBAI MIRROR; November 26, 2018)

Dancing has always been a passion, but till I went to college, it had been limited to performing the latest Bollywood chartbuster in front of a mirror at home or occasionally at a party. At the Delhi University, I joined the choreography society and started learning new dance forms and techniques. In the third year, I got myself a job in a ballet company as an instructor and started teaching little girls. But while I loved dance, I always wanted to act but coming to Mumbai and pursuing the dream seemed somewhat far-fetched, so I decided to explore dance further and after graduation, joined a school in Delhi as a dance teacher. To be honest, I wasn’t too keen on taking it up initially, but once I started taking classes, I began to enjoy myself. They were sweet and showered me with a lot of love. Also, I would get free by afternoon and had the evening to myself. I was paid Rs 15,000 and I gave my first salary to my parents.

During the first few days, only the girls would come for the classes while the boys would go to music class. But a week later, all of them started coming for dance. The music teacher even complained about it. But it made me feel really good. On my first Teacher’s Day, I got a lot of gifts and was adjudged teacher of the year. I juggled ballet class and the school for around four months. Then, I got an audition call from the reality show Dance India Dance and decided I wanted to give it a shot believing it could be my gateway to acting. The principal was really upset but I had made up my mind.

I was among the top 100 participants there, but things didn’t work out. Since I was already in Mumbai, I decided to stay back for 10-15 days with an art director friend and go for a few auditions. I didn’t do anything concrete during the time. I was just hanging out at Juhu’s Prithvi Café and a few other places. But in the process I fell in love with the city. I went back to Delhi, spoke to my dad about my acting dreams and returned to Mumbai thinking I would instantly land a big break. Nothing of that kind happened but within three-four months I learnt where the auditions were happening and who the coordinators, casting directors were. I had come with just Rs 10,000 in my account so while looking for acting jobs I also called up a choreographer wondering if they needed an assistant. I was even ready to work as an assistant director. But no offers were forthcoming.

Then, I started teaching yoga to the aunties in my building. Though I hadn’t started the class to earn money, the ladies insisted on paying me after the first few sessions. I would spend two hours every day teaching yoga. It’s good for health and I still practice it daily.

Meanwhile, I had got my first ad as the second lead. The people on the set weren’t nice and I remember crying in the auto rickshaw while returning home. I was really upset, but I didn’t give up. I learnt how the system worked so I’d be more careful the next time. My next ad was with Neerja director Ram Madhvani. This time I had the lead role. It was for a cellular brand and a lot of fun. We also did a few workshops before the shoot, so I knew exactly what to expect.

The ads kept happening periodically. The rest of the time I continued to audition. After a year I got a call from casting director Mukesh Chhabra’s office for a film. It was the second lead again and I wasn’t keen on it, but since Mukesh himself asked me to take it up I accepted the role and even shot for the film but it eventually got shelved so I wouldn’t like to name it or the filmmaker.

A few months later, I got another call from Mukesh’s office, this time for the main character in Dangal. I auditioned for it and then forgot all about the screen test till I got a call from his office again informing me that Aamir Khan wanted to meet me. I had just reached Delhi to celebrate my mother’s birthday, but I immediately returned to Mumbai only to discover that 20 other girls had also been shortlisted. We had to go through a few more sessions. Aamir sir came to meet us in his Mahavir Phogat avatar. The sessions went on for a month, by the end of which, we were all getting impatient to know who had bagged the part as we had been asked to not take up any other work. Then, Fatima (Sana Shaikh) and I got a call from the production house informing us that she would be playing Geeta, Mahavir’s elder daughter, while I had landed the part of the younger daughter, Babita Kumari. I will never forget that day.

The rest, as they say, is history…

Rachana Dubey (BOMBAY TIMES; November 3, 2018)

As an artiste, she has been a discovery. Right from an unconventional debut in Dangal, she has chosen to be seen in films that offer her performance-oriented parts. Sanya Malhotra, whose recent release, Junglee Pictures’ Badhaai Ho, hit bullseye at the box-office, admits she’s a fan of Bollywood’s masala fare and wants to give it a shot soon. “Masala films are tough to pull off,” she says. Over to the actress who talks about her recent success, the impact she hopes it will have on her career and the road ahead...

Looking at your brief filmography, it’s evident that you’re drawn to performance-oriented roles…
(Cuts in) Yes, but I grew up watching Bollywood masala films and I want to be a part of one such film, at least. I’ve not really planned the films that I have eventually become a part of. It’s all happened organically. Acting is an art that I am learning on the job. The thing that I can do on my part is to follow and prepare myself for the characters that I choose to play. Given a choice, I would love to do a masala film, but those are tough to do. There’s so much prep that goes into those roles, which seem so easy on screen. From the time I was a kid, I used to enact scenes from all those hit films in front of the mirror.

When I decided to become an actor, I realised that every role that we play on screen requires a different kind of prep. I learnt wrestling for Dangal, went through an emotional grind for Photograph and stepped out of my comfort zone and shed too many inhibitions for Pataakha. Badhaai Ho involved a lot of careful reading to understand the graph of my part. As an actor, I have a multiple personality disorder. Right now, I actually don’t know which zone I am more comfortable in as an actor. I just know that I want to do everything, because this is one profession that lets you experience multiple lives.

How much does the success of Badhaai Ho matter to you at this point in your career? Do you think that this will be a turning point?
It makes a lot of difference when your film is a commercial and critical success. When I debuted in Dangal, I didn’t know what difference it could make to my professional life. In just three days of the film’s release, I was called for the film Photograph by Ritesh Batra. I got a chance to work with Nawazuddin Siddiqui. Some credible filmmakers approach you when you have a commercial success attached to your name. When I first heard the script of Badhaai Ho, I knew this film will be special, but I’d never envisioned the response that we got.

In a matter of two weeks, you experienced two different emotions as an actor. Pataakha, despite its unique intensity, didn’t work at the box office, and Badhaai Ho, which was a rare, light-hearted story, clicked…
Pataakha didn’t work, but I am proud of the film. I got a chance to work with a director like Vishal Bhardwaj and the process of shooting was such a learning experience for me. One thing that you can’t control is the box office. I would have loved it if more people went to the theatres to watch Pataakha, but sooner or later, they will catch the film on other platforms. So, I am still positive about it. Two weeks after Pataakha, before I realised, Badhaai Ho had hit the marquee, and is still doing well. So, life has its ways of balancing the picture for you, especially when you can’t do it yourself.

As a single girl in Mumbai, was finding your feet in showbiz and making this city your home a tough call?
Other than the use of garam masala in the food, everything about Mumbai is so lovable. I am a Dilliwali, but I think I was meant to be a Mumbaikar. In a matter of 20 days, this city became my home — it’s safe, it calms me down and fills me with a strange sense of independence. My family lives in Delhi and they visit me often, but in the five years that I have been in Mumbai, this city has given me everything I wanted, so much so, that now, I miss Mumbai when I go to Delhi. I came to Mumbai to participate in a dance reality show and thought that could be my ticket to Bollywood. Gradually, I discovered that acting is what I am more passionate about and that passion has helped my boat sail. I don’t know what lies ahead, but I love the space that I am in right now.

Diwali is around the corner. Will you be heading home to spend time with your family? With a crackling success at hand, will the festival be more special?
This phase in my career is sudden and unbelievable. I’m totally looking forward to Diwali this year, because I will celebrate it at home after three years. I’m heading back home to Delhi on November 5. Uss din se, I will start gorging on all the ghar ka khaana and catch up with my family and friends. It’s been three years since I celebrated Diwali in Delhi. My mother can barely wait to see me. She has watched Badhaai Ho thrice with her friends. Now, when I go back home, I will make it a point to watch the film with my family and close friends.