Aaliyah Qureishi On Working With Shah Rukh Khan In 'Jawan': He Taught Me About Power Of Belief

Singer-Songwriter Aaliyah Qureishi, who goes by the moniker Jhalli, is all set to play one of the 6 girls in Shahrukh Khan’s girl squad in ‘Jawan’ that releases next month. The film is also her acting debut in Bollywood. 

It was during the lockdown that she discovered her childhood passion for cinema, and soon landed her a role in Indian comedy-drama streaming television series ‘Eternally Confused And Eager For Love’ on Netflix. In a matter of months, she was approached by Mukesh Chhabra’s casting consultancy to audition for a role in ‘Jawan’ and there has been no looking back for her since then. 

Now ahead of the release of Atlee’s ‘Jawan’, Aaliyah, in an exclusive chat with Outlook, spoke at length about her role, how it was to work with Shah Rukh Khan, her transition to acting and more.

1. How was your experience working with Shah Rukh Khan?

It was fantastic! He is an incredibly kind and funny person and made me feel at home from the first time we met. It was my first movie so he would give me little directions about how to better catch the camera, or how to hold a gun comfortably. He even taught me his signature dance step at one point! 

I would sit next to him by the monitors and ask questions about acting and life and he would graciously impart his wisdom and life lessons to me. He taught me about the power of belief and also his incredible discipline inspired me to push myself and work harder. 

2. How is your bond like with the other 5 women in the squad?

We’re really close friends! Atlee sir’s casting was really on point, because we really feel like a team and all our personalities complement each other. We have the most fun when we’re together and are always laughing at our inside jokes. Sometimes one of us would say a random phrase that only we understood and all six of us would burst into laughter, everyone on set would look at us so confused. 

Fun aside, all of them have been there for me in good times as well as bad and I have only love and respect for my girls. 

3. What was the reason behind the transition from a singer-songwriter to an actress?

It’s not a transition - I’m still as much as a singer/ songwriter/ music producer as much as I am an actress. They both serve such different purposes in my life. It was always my intention to make a career in both music and acting. Even as a child I didn’t really believe I had any limitations.

The opportunity to act just came up later in life than music. Having done a few ads in my teenage years I had developed some connections with casting agents. Through them I auditioned for and got cast in a Netflix-Tiger Baby show called ‘Eternally Confused and Eager for Love’. My experience on set was so good that I started auditioning fervently for other projects. I even called up casting directors I knew years ago to ask if they had any auditions for me. The audition for ‘Jawan’ luckily came my way and the rest is history.  

4. Tell us about some of your most memorable moments from the sets of ‘Jawan’.

This one is not really a set story- but it is an awesome story. When ‘Bramhastra’ released, we all really wanted to see it but we were in the middle of a hectic shoot schedule. So SRK, being the magnanimous soul that he is, booked out a whole theatre in Chennai for all of us to go watch the film together. It was an amazing experience to watch SRK in ‘Brahmastra’ while sitting with him and cheering for him in the theatre! It felt like our own little premier. 

Another great moment is when I had to go through stunt training and that was really fun! I felt really powerful throwing men three times my size down. The training included hand to hand combat, harnessed jumps and gun training.

5. What was your initial reaction when you got to know you've been selected for a movie with SRK and were there any obstacles that you had to face?

I honestly didn’t believe it for a while when the casting agent called me and told me I had got the role! I must have asked him 5 times if he was sure, because it felt surreal that I was going to be working with a legend. I wouldn’t say I had to face obstacles; I viewed every challenge more as a learning experience. Since it is my first film, I had to quickly adapt to the fast pace of things and learn a lot about lighting, cameras, sound and creating the director’s exact vision on set. But every challenge taught me how to be a better actor and I’m grateful for every experience. 

6. Without revealing much, could you tell us a little more about your role in this film?

All I can say at this point is that I’m in SRK’s core squad and I am a fighter. I can’t reveal much else right now but I’m really excited for audiences to witness the amazing, action-packed, visually delightful, heartwarming film that is ‘Jawan’.