Exclusive: Nepotism Can Take A Hike, Radhika Apte Is Here To Stay In Bollywood

In the past couple of months, a lot has been spoken about Nepotism in the Hindi film industry. While the debate on whether it exists or not is still ongoing, Radhika Apte is one actor that comes to our mind who has made her mark in Bollywood on her own.
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More than her critically acclaimed performances in Badlapur, Parched and Manjhi-The Mountain Man, Radhika Apte has often been in news for her bold approach in her career.

One fine evening we met Radhika Apte and this is what followed over a cup of coffee.

To be seen and heard in the crowd of star kids. How did you manage to get noticed?

There was no plan. And I think there’s no one way of getting into Bollywood. Everybody’s journey is different. And you can’t copy others’ journey, it might not work for you. So there’s not really one way, a plan or any particular ladder that you can climb. How I got in was because I was doing a lot of theater. I got calls for auditions from casting directors who watched me in a play. And that’s how I started getting work. And then being here, going for auditions, making new contacts... I think it’s still a struggle.

For a freelancer, it’s a challenge every day because you have to get work and keep getting work that you like. You have to be up-to-date and practiced and disciplined in order to maintain the quality of work. ?This is a different and difficult field because your film might be successful or not but it’s not entirely in your hands, a lot of things dictate that. Failure of your film, failure of a bunch of your films, it is also a lot of PR and other stuff that you need to do in order to market yourself, it’s a lot of things, it’s not really just one.

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Talking about failures, is it easier for an insider to deal with failures and get work, compared to an outsider?

Failure for every person is the same psychologically, to begin with. I’m not a star kid, I cannot talk on their behalf. It’s difficult I think to digest a failure because there’s a lot of expectation, lot of baggage, but may be still getting a new film is easier than somebody who is completely new. But again, there are star kids who’ve had unsuccessful films and have still managed to make their careers and you can’t take away their patience, their hard work, their sincerity away from them, just because they are star kids. They have to establish themselves anyway. They get an entry very easily, but sustainability is something they have to maintain, but it’s different for them. And it's different for outsiders to come into the A-listers league- is very very difficult.

Are there any hidden challenges that no one talks about?

The challenges are pretty standard, to be honest. Any field you get into, you need to be really good at your art. You need practice and be disciplined. You have to be professional and hardworking. You can’t be like - ok I wake up late so I don’t come on time on the set or whatever it is. These are challenges and I think - perseverance and patience. To find your own path and find your own space is very difficult.

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Do you think maintaining equations within the industry is important for an outsider?

Honestly, I don’t like the term outsider or insider at all. You can say that I’m not a star kid. Or you can tell me that I’m not from a family of Bollywood. But I’m not an outsider to the industry anymore. I’m a part of the industry. My father is a doctor, it’s easier for my brother to become a doctor. There’s another doctor whose father wasn’t a doctor. He’s not an outsider he’s still in the field. Similarly, I’m living, breathing in this industry. Then, why am I an outsider?

I work with so many people whose families had nothing to do with Bollywood like Sujoy Ghosh, Anurag Kashyap, Sriram Raghavan, Harsh Kulkarni, Leena Yadav. ?But they are as much an insider as anybody else is. It is not that you have to keep good relations with other people. I don’t believe in that. There are people I think I would not get along with creatively and I’m not forcing myself to have a relationship with them. And yes, you have to maintain with casting directors, directors, and producers.?

Have you ever lost out on any opportunity? Any instance where you didn’t?get the role because of a star kid?

Not particularly. But sometimes what happens is that the scale of the film increases. The idea of a film that was perceived at a particular budget suddenly becomes a huge film before the production & pre-production. And then they want people who can sell it. They take A-Listers because they are more popular and you lose the job. That has happened to me. But not because I’m an outsider that they have decided to cast a star kid. it’s understandable, it’s not my money.?

I was fortunate to have some good friends here. They’ve always been there. Not to guide me but to have a healthy discussion. People who support you and be there for you. Kashyap is one of them. Vinay Pathak is one of them. And some really close friends like Kalki, Gulshan.

If things are not going your way, then what keeps Radhika motivated?

The thought of quitting comes many times because it’s a difficult place to be in. But the problem is I really don’t know what else to do. Because I really love this and once you’ve tasted this you don’t want to do anything else. This is?something I always wanted to do.

You have to be patient. I know people who have been so patient that I can see that their careers are not going to take off. Because sometimes you don’t have what it takes. I think being realistic is very important. Not be arrogant about your own self but not be blind either or not be too under-confident as well. It is important to know that this is not the end of the world. You need to make peace with that.

India is obsessed with fair skin. With campaigns like 'Dark is Beautiful' trying to change the way our society thinks. Have you ever been discriminated on the basis of colour?or been body shamed??

I really like my skin complexion. We have a lot of dusky actresses who are so good like Deepika Padukone. See, it sort of matters in the beginning I feel. I was told a lot of things – I was told I’m very dusky, I was told I’m fat, I was told my nose is not good, I was told that I should get a boob job done, I should get like fat reduction done. By people who are so irrelevant to me now. But when you come to the field you just don’t know who to talk to and I did not get offended or I did not really pay attention to what they were saying. And I think everybody gets these suggestions. But you don’t have to pay attention,? just keep doing your job. So I don’t think but you are right, fair people do have an upper hand but it’s changing, I think it's definitely changing.?

Would you like to be a part of a Karan Johar film?

I’ve never been offered a KJo film before. So if I get an offer, then I might just do it. It really depends on a lot of things. But I’m not against doing these films at all, I would love to do them.

Radhika Apte is currently working with filmmaker R. Balki on?Pad Man?along with actors Akshay Kumar and Sonam Kapoor. For the uninitiated,?Pad Man?is a compelling tale of Muruganantham who set out on a mission to make affordable sanitary napkins after seeing his wife’s ordeal and poor menstrual hygiene.