Actress Harshita Gaur recently joined NewsX for an exclusive interview as part of its special series NewsX India A-List. Best known for her roles in Channel V’s TV show ‘Sadda Haq’ and Amazon Prime series ‘Mirzapur’, and ‘Mirzapur 2’, Harshita shared with us her journey so far in the industry and her insights.
Harshita was last seen reprising the role of Dimpi Pandit in the hinterland dark-crime drama series ‘Mirzapur 2’ and earned many critical acclaims for her character. Talking about post-Mirzapur success and how does it feel, she said, “things have changed, and especially it’s overwhelming when people recognise you and come to you, like your character, and mention how much they like the show and your performance.”
Sharing with us how the journey has been from being a trained Kathak dancer and engineer to now being a very successful actor, Hashita told us “I was a dancer while growing up but not professionally and engineer by qualification. I’ve only been an actor professionally but the journey has been interesting as I come from a background of doctors. They were a little sceptical initially but then I was lucky enough to start with a show. The moment I was in Mumbai I had a show and that went on for a long time. It was good and I appreciate it and after that, it’s still ongoing. Anything that people experienced before they get their first project I experienced those things after I got my first project.” From TV to web, she has acted in a couple of shows and further shared her views on OTT platforms and their popularity. “I see a lot of Bollywood actors working in web series. Maybe the web has taken that space and people want to move to project basis like me. OTT has played a huge part because suddenly it opened doors to many actors, projects, and directors. Everybody like this platform and it offers a lot more to do. At the same time, the web is accessible and people want to watch good content. Even when it comes to films, they watch a film and spend money only if they really want to see that content.”
“When we talk about Bollywood, it’s mainly films and people enjoying watching them on the big screen. It’s a dream as community watching on a 70 mm screen is an experience in itself,” added Harshita.
One thing which is often debated when it comes to the entertainment industry at large is nepotism. She puts forward her opinions on it. “I have no opinion on it. I just feel that it exists, and it exists everywhere. For example, I come from a family of doctors. If my father had a hospital and he wanted me to be a doctor. It would be easier for me to work in that hospital than anybody else coming into that hospital. It’s just some people are born with advantages and sometimes I empathise with the star kids who want to make their own way.”
“On the other hand outsiders, I’m also considering the hard work that people like us put in, who knew no one from the industry, have to face all these things. That’s how things were always for me. So I just need to be happy when I’m doing a show and keep my aspirations high and continue working towards it. If you take undue advantage of nepotism and people who are in a position of power to give you work where it becomes a deciding criterion that we need to give these people work and not others that shouldn’t happen,” added Harshita.
On a concluding note, the actress spoke about the directors she would love to work with on the big screen, “2021 looks really good. Two of my two favourite directors that I would want to work with are Zoya Akhtar and Anurag Kashyap. I just love Zoya Akhtar and though I’ve done ‘Sacred Games’ with Anurag Kashyap it was a small part. I would love to work with him again on a bigger project.”
Sharing her views on OTT platforms and their popularity., Harshita Gaur said, “I see a lot of Bollywood actors working in web series. Maybe the web has taken that space and people like me want to move to project basis. OTT has played a huge part because suddenly it has opened doors to many actors, projects, and directors. Everybody like this new platform and it offers a lot more to do. At the same time, the web is accessible and people want to watch good content. Even when it comes to films, they watch a film and spend money only if they really want to see that content.”