“My father was my best friend and losing him felt like the ground under my feet was taken away from me. Although I grew up in a hostel from the age of 12, due to my dad’s transferrable job, I was still quite close to him. I used to share everything with him. We had our inside jokes, secrets and a bond like no other. After my major in Dentistry, I finally came back home to my parents hoping to spend quality time with them. Unfortunately, within six months of my return home, my father passed away. I was shattered to the core. My world felt shaken and everything in my life came crumbling down. It took me more than three months to even process that my father was not with me anymore, physically. By the time, I did, the family’s responsibilities came my way.

My father always wanted to see me as an actress. We both used to talk about it for hours. In fact, while I was in my college, he used to encourage me to give auditions for movies but unfortunately, I couldn’t due to my exams and hectic academic schedule. I remember a call between us where he had asked me to attend the auditions of Happy Days by Sekhar Kammula. I remember, when I had landed my debut movie chance, we had gone to a supermarket together. He adorably told me to make him my manager once I became famous. He was quite eager to see me on big screen but he left me before he could. He was my biggest cheer leader.

After my first film, I had put on a lot of weight due to depression. Everyone commented about it and fat shamed me without knowing what I was going through. Losing someone so close was not easy to handle. People assume, actors and actresses lead luxurious lives and do not experience pain. Our hard work, our struggle, our mental health, our misery is hardly noticed. It gets masked underneath the perceptions.
I have come a long way and I know I have a lot more to achieve. With my father being my guiding force in my heart, I will surely overcome every obstacle.”

#acting #passion #journey #inspire #motivation #Hyderabad #HumansofHyderabad