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Salman didn't want to do Prem Ratan Dhan Payo with me: Sonam Kapoor

Salman didn't want to do Prem Ratan Dhan Payo with me: Sonam Kapoor

Has the actor's silver spoon background helped her bag films? Sonam puts the rumours to rest
19 Sep, 2016

People are quick to judge Sonam Kapoor's fame, crediting her film offers to her famous father, Anil Kapoor. Dispelling that notion, the Neerja actor dishes the details on how she made it into Bollywood.

"I lost out on a lot of films because of my father. Salman Khan didn't want to do Prem Ratan Dhan Payo with me. He was like, 'Anil Kapoor has been my close friend. How can I romance his daughter?' It was really difficult and weird," Sonam reveals in an interview with HuffPo India.

Relating another similar incident, she says, "Farah Khan is one of my mother's best friends yet I haven't done a Farah film, nor does she look at me as an actress she'd want to cast. It's a different, non-work relationship."

She also adds that the top actresses in the industry do not come from the film fraternity.

"The top heroines today -- Deepika Padukone and Priyanka Chopra -- are both women who aren't from the industry. And are you telling me that Alia Bhatt is where she is because of her family and not because of her talent? Nepotism exists everywhere but that doesn't make the journey any easier."

Pointing out why the silver spoon upbringing doesn't help in the bagging films, Sonam explains, "It's a business and nobody will invest crores in the film's production, and another few in marketing only because you're related to someone... and completely talent-less. It just doesn't add up."

"You audition. I auditioned for Saawariya along with Shivani Kapoor, Shraddha Kapoor and Deepika Padukone. There's a process and we are all equal when we go through it. I even auditioned for Delhi 6 and projects for Yash Raj Films. I didn't just wake up one day to have all these films in my roster!"

Having said that, the actor believes that regardless of what the story is, it will always be highlighted in a manner that benefits the media.

"It doesn't suit the popular narrative, which is that of an industry girl having it easy. This version almost contradicts it. At the end of the day, people, including journalists, are biased and believe in what they choose to believe in," she says.

She's one lucky actor to not have been linked to any scandals, but she has her PR team to thank for that, Sonam says, "I cannot imagine life without them, we've been with each other since I started out as an actor. They know everything. And they're good at controlling it because very rarely does something about my personal life come out in the papers."

But that's also because she lives a rather scandal-free life.

"That's true. I have never dated anybody from the industry, never had a scandalous affair with someone, I avoid parties and I cannot touch alcohol. I'm literally curled up in my bed with a book by 10 in the night almost every other day."

Comments

Sandesh Sep 19, 2016 06:54pm
Purely on her acting skills - there was no way she could have made it to movies. She is in Movie Industry just because of her father's name. But anyways she is not alone, there are many like her out there.
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Aditya Sharma Sep 19, 2016 07:33pm
Learn acting first,your beautiful and should become a model
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dabangg Sep 20, 2016 12:09am
You might not have had film offers without giving any auditions but you atleast got an audition which many outsiders do not.
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SQ Sep 20, 2016 09:46am
Isn't it hard to believe that in a country of 1 billion people, the only people who get to even audition for big projects all come from families of actors and producers? Being a star's son or daughter won't win you public accolades or make you a star but you're still blocking the path of those with potential, plunging your already talentless industry into further mediocrity.
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really? Sep 20, 2016 11:10pm
@SQ "Isn't it hard to believe that in a country of 1 billion people, the only people who get to even audition for big projects all come from families of actors and producers?" Undoubtedly if you are from the industry you may get an audition that an outsider may not and that itself is a big advantage. I do not however agree that only people from film families get auditioned. Among current successful actors and actresses - the following have no film background : Shah Rukh, Akshay Kumar, John Abraham, Siddharth Malhotra, Ayushman Khurana, Ranveer Singh, Sushant Singh Rajput, Aishwarya Rai, Katrina Kaif, Priyanka Chopra, Vidya Balan, Bipasha Basu, Deepika Padukone, Asin, Anushka Sharma, Kangana Ranaut, Parineeti Chopra, Jacqueline Fernandes, Ileana D'Cruz
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