As the daughter of actor Chunkey Panday, and with her Bollywood pedigree, the conversation around Ananya Panday tends to be about her privilege. The nepotism discourse proved difficult to shrug off even when she delivered a riveting performance in Shakun Batra’s 'Gehraiyaan'. But Panday believes a time will come when this baggage will stop overshadowing her credibility as an actor.
“For me, as a person, it's one step at a time, and the fact that [my acting] gets a little better every time proves that,” she told OTT Play, during her round of public appearances for 'Liger;, in which she stars opposite Vijay Deverakonda. “Gehraiyaan was my best performance so far. As an actor and as a person I want to keep getting better. I want to keep growing… I am very hopeful that I will win everyone over one day.”
Her debut in Dharma Productions’ Student of the Year 2 (2019) earned her a fan following. But the 23-year-old has faced considerable flak too, notably for comments on Koffee With Karan. (The actress had said that even though her father is an actor, he had never been in a Dharma film, nor appeared ever on KWK.)
Looking back on the backlash to her remark, Panday clarifies that she agrees star kids have an advantage, especially in terms of ease of access to people in the industry. But that does not mean she takes her opportunities for granted. “I agree that we have an advantage but that doesn’t mean that I will not work hard. I don’t want to waste the time and opportunity that I have got," she told the publication.
'Liger', with Vijay Deverakonda is her next big opportunity. Panday admits she’s feeling nervous, but the 17-city promotional tour has been a welcome chance to witness fan sentiment firsthand. Now she hopes the goodwill will translate into packed audiences.
In the meantime, she’s holding on to memories of shooting Liger. “Vijay is the complete opposite of his character in the film. He is a very shy, quiet and absolutely amazing co-star,” she says, enthused. The crew had travelled to Las Vegas to shoot the portions featuring boxer Mike Tyson. Since it was a small unit, they grew close, and the camaraderie is one Panday speaks of wistfully. “After the shoot, we’d go horse riding,” she says. “We’d even have all our meals together!
'Liger' will release in theatres on August 25.
