Bhoomi actor Aditi Rao Hydari: Filmmakers not often thought of me as a strong face

Talking of her film Bhoomi, where she plays the role of Sanjay Dutt’s daughter, actor Aditi Rao Hydari shares that makers were looking for someone newer and who had not done a lot of work before.

All geared up for her upcoming release, Bhoomi, touted to be Sanjay Dutt’s comeback film, actor Aditi Rao Hydari is content with the way her career has shaped up.

Actor Aditi Rao Hydari will next be seen in Sanjay Leela Bhansali’s Padmavati.(Amal KS/HT Photo)

However, looking back at the seven years she has been a part of Bollywood, with a dozen films to her credit, the actor feels that it’s disappointing that filmmakers never really thought of her for a strong role to portray on-screen.

“When I was offered Bhoomi, I couldn’t believe it for a moment and I actually wondered as to how they [makers] thought of me, because I am usually not very often thought of as a very strong face, though I don’t know why that is. I think most filmmakers have a very narrow sort of view of who is strong and who is delicate,” says Aditi, who has been a part of films such as Yeh Saali Zindagi (2011), London, Paris, New York (2012) and Murder 3 (2013).

Aditi plays the role of Dutt’s daughter in Bhoomi, a revenge drama that shows an intense father-daughter relationship. On what might have worked for her for this particular role, she adds, “Here, they needed vulnerability for the character. So, I guess that worked in my favour. They needed that sunshine girl, who then goes through something, so it was that combination that they were looking for.”

Aditi also feels that makers didn’t want someone who is already a big name in the industry, to play the titular role. “Apparently, they were looking at people who had not done a lot of work, though I have been here for almost seven years now. They were looking at people, who were much newer may be and who had just done a few films,” she says, adding, “And then somewhere, I don’t even know how, maybe it was just the right time and place when somebody just thinks of you, and they called me.”

She further reveals that when she first heard the story, she didn’t know anything about rest of the cast, “but the story was very powerful and they told me the name of the film and that I was to play the title part, I had no reason to say no.”

Asked how she reacted to co-starring with Dutt, the actor says she had never imagined that she’ll ever get to be in a film with him. “He is such a rock star. On-screen, he is playing this father, who is very protective and I play his daughter’s role. It’s a powerful story and Sanjay sir is so effortless,” she says, adding that she was lucky to have been picked for a film that Dutt had chosen to be his comeback film.

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