Esha Gupta Exclusive Interview: “It’s Not Easy To Sustain, Survive & Be Happy”

Mohnish Singh |Jul 06, 2019

Esha Gupta is currently seen in crime thriller “One Day: Justice Delivered”. Also starring seasoned actors Anupam Kher and Kumud Mishra in important roles, the film opened in cinemas on 5th July.

From winning the coveted Miss India International crown in 2007 to starring in films alongside some well-established B-town actors, model-turned-actress Esha Gupta has come a long way in her professional life. She is happy with the kinds of opportunities that came along and the way her career has shaped up over the years.

Esha Gupta
Image source: BollywoodHungama

Esha Gupta, who began her acting career with crime thriller Jannat 2 opposite Emraan Hashmi, is currently seen in yet another crime thriller, One Day: Justice Delivered (2019). Also starring seasoned actors like Anupam Kher and Kumud Mishra in important roles, the movie hit the marquee on 5th July 2019.

Ahead of the theatrical release of One Day: Justice Delivered, STARBIZ correspondent Mohnish Singh got chatty with the gorgeous actress. In this candid interview, Esha Gupta talked about her character in the movie, her showbiz journey so far, the biopic she would like to headline and so much more. Excerpts...

Brief us about your character in One Day: Justice Delivered.

In One Day: Justice Delivered, I am playing Special Crime Branch officer Laxmi Rathi. It is a no-nonsense character. Any Special Crime Branch officer you meet in real life will be a no-nonsense person. No matter whether they have a genial disposition or a serious one, most of them are no-nonsense. What an actor’s day to day routine includes is to meet other actors, chat with his or her team and give interviews to journalists like you. But Special Crime Branch officers, on the other hand, deal with criminals on a daily basis. They are very strong-headed, strong-minded and they have a very different personality and that is something even I have tried to maintain in the film.

349 Starbiz 8 7 2019 Quote 01

From winning the coveted Miss India crown in 2007 to One Day: Justice Delivered, how do you see your journey over the years?

I actually started my career in 2011, after I completed my acting course and entered the film industry. That I participate in Miss India contest was my mother’s dream. I fulfilled her dream by participating in the pageant and winning the crown. Then I completed my education. I always wanted to study law. That is why I said that my career did not begin in 2007; it actually started in 2011.

It has been a great beginning. My journey so far has been good. Every day is a new day for me. It is great. It has been beautiful. It is not easy to sustain, survive and be happy. I won’t say I am content because when you say that you are content, it feels like your life is over. I would say I am very happy to be where I am today.

You made your acting debut with Kunal Deshmukh’s Jannat 2 (2011). Do you remember how your first audition for the film went?

I can tell you this with a guarantee that if today I ask director Kunal Deshmukh about my audition, he would say it went very bad. He would also mention that I did not know my dialogues properly, which is actually true. I did not know anything back then. I had met him two days before the audition. I did not even know which film I was auditioning for. I got to know it later that it was for Jannat 2 because the dialogues which were given to me during the audition were there in the film as well. Frankly speaking, I did not know what I did in my audition. But it was good, I guess because after that the makers called me up and said, “You are our heroine for Jannat 2.” Either I was blinking a lot or I was not blinking at all during my audition. When you are nervous, you don’t know what you are doing. I really did not know what was going on.

One Day: Justice Delivered also features seasoned actors like Anupam Kher and Kumud Mishra on its cast. Did you get to learn anything from them?

When you work with such experienced actors, how come you cannot learn anything from them? I was telling this to another journalist also that even if you sit with these two actors and have food with them, you will get to learn a lot. They are so natural. They are such huge institutions in themselves. Anupam sir and Kumud sir have studied at the National School of Drama. Kumud sir was junior to Anupam sir. But having these two actors in my right and the left side was an inexplicable experience. I thanked my God. Acting with these two is a big deal.

349 Starbiz 8 7 2019 Quote 02

Your father has been an IAF officer. Did you have to convince your family before entering films?

Everybody is very lenient at my home. Yes, my parents are disciplined, but they are not at all strict. I have learned discipline from them. I think everyone who wears a uniform is disciplined. The same goes for my character Laxmi Rathi in One Day: Justice Delivered. Even sportsmen are very disciplined.

You are a proud owner of a team in the Street Ball League, which is the first ever 3v3 semi-pro Basketball league in India.

I have played volleyball at the state level until I was in school. I used to represent Delhi’s team. I did not pursue it as a career path because, at that time, there were not many opportunities to make a career in that field. There are not many opportunities even today. I did not continue the game further because, as I told, you there was no future. In India, people are crazy for cricket only; no other sports exist for them.

One of the main reasons for me to take the ownership of Hoop Heads, my basketball team, was because it ensures a reach to boys and girls who are talented. It is to make the game common. Because trust me, our country has so much talent.

349 Starbiz 8 7 2019 Quote 03

You are also quite vocal about various environmental issues.

It is the need of the hour. I feel the biggest war right now is not terrorism; the biggest war right now the world should be against is climate change. But the problem is that we are getting selfish day by day, so nobody is taking it seriously. That’s why I keep raising my voice against it through social media and try to inform and influence people so that they actually know what climate change is and what is happening to our environment, because most of the time, people don’t know about such issues. Not everybody is trying to shy away from such topics, but the problem is that most of them don’t know anything. So I try to sort of inform them.

Do you have any dream role or any biopic that you want to do?

I have a lot of dream roles. But I would love to do a biopic on PT Usha. I don’t know whether or not somebody is making it.

What is next on the platter?

I am about to commence work on a web-series in September.

Comments

Sort by Newest | Popular

Next Story