‘I’m The Surprise Package Of Housefull 5’

‘The
Zomato
delivery
guy
wants
to
click
a
picture
with
you.’
‘My
car
has
gone
for
servicing
so
I
ended
up
going
in
rickshaws
and
they
recognise
me
from
ads.’
‘When
I’m
walking
my
dog,
people
stop
by
and
say,
“Oh,
we
loved
you
in

Bigg
Boss“.’
‘I
was
shooting
for

Housefull
in
a
village
and
there,
people
were
coming
over
and
clicking
pictures
with
me.’

Housefull
5
just
announced
that
it
was
‘cruising
through
the
last
schedule’
of
their
cinematic
journey,
and

Soundarya
Sharma
hopes
the
multi-starrer
will
be
the
turning
point
of
her
career.

Soundarya’s
career
path
has
been
shaped
by
her
work
in
glitzy
commercials,
reality
shows
and
a
film
named

Ranchi
Diaries,
which
went
unnoticed
upon
its
release
in
2017.

Now,
this
mega
movie
starring
Akshay
Kumar,
Sanjay
Dutt,
Abhishek
Bachchan,
Jacqueline
Fernandez
and
a
host
of
stars,
has
started
making
some
noise
to
attract
everyone’s
attention.

“When
you
are
an
outsider
and
you
get
a
job,
you
feel
like,
‘Oh
my
God,
I
have
arrived
and
now
I
am
the
next
big
thing.’
Cut
to
no
work
coming
your
way
and
you
are
like,
what
went
wrong.
But
you
have
to
believe
that
you’re
a
star
because
you
are
your
own
cheerleader.
No
one
else
is
going
to
do
that
for
you,”
Soundarya
tells

Mayur
Sanap/Rediff.com.

How
does
it
feel
to
be
part
of
the

Housefull
franchise?

I
feel
truly
privileged.
This
is
going
to
be
a
turning
point
for
me.

It’s
a
big
opportunity
for
anyone
who
wants
to
be
a
part
of
the
bigger
aspect
of
the
film
industry.
I
am
excited
and
thrilled
that
we
finished
the
first
schedule.

I
am
the
surprise
package
of
the
film.

It
is
going
to
be
very
different
from
the

Housefull
films
you
have
seen
so
far.

How
did
you
get
on
board?

I’m
really,
really
grateful
and
thankful
to
my
God
sister,
Warda
Nadiadwala
(Producer
Sajid
Nadiadwala’s
wife)
for
believing
in
me.

People
have
godfathers
here.
We’ve
not
heard
of
God
sisters.
She
is
God-sent
for
me.

She
had
seen
me
in
ads
as
well
as

Bigg
Boss
and
was
impressed.

I
am
hustling
so
hard
to
achieve
what
I
want
to
but
when
someone
says
something,
it
feels
amazing.

Even
after
you
become
famous,
that
does
not
necessarily
translate
into
work.
Whatever
work
and
shows
I
have
done
as
a
budding
actor,
this
is
a
huge
film
for
anyone.

It’s
been
difficult,
for
sure.
But
God
is
really
kind
to
me
and
my
hard
work
is
paying
off
now.

Akshay
Kumar
is
known
to
be
a
prankster
on
sets.
How
was
your
experience
with
him
during

Housefull
5?

I’m
the
junior-most
on
set,
so
I’m
subjected
to
most
bullying
and
trolling.
(Laughs)

I’m
still
discovering
my
cast
and
Akshay
sir.
He’s
fun
to
work
with
and
very
supportive.
And
he
is
definitely
a
prankster.

One
day,
he
had
texted
me
from
Jackie’s
(Jacqueline
Fernandez)
phone
when
we
were
sitting
together.
He
texted
me
something
which
I
can’t
tell
you
but
it
was
so
goofy.

She
was
busy
talking
to
someone
and
I
was
like
what
happened
to
you,
why
are
you
texting
me
this?
But
it
was
not
her!

Right
before
that,
my
conversation
with
Jackie
was
very
different;
it
was
related
to
God
and
things
like
that.
So
I
was
not
expecting
that
text.
It
was
so
funny.

I
have
worked
with
him
in
an
ad
but
working
on
a
film
is
very
different.

I’m
still
discovering
and
learning.

Riteish
sir
(Deshmukh)
is
so
funny
and
AB
sir
(Abhishek
Bachchan)
is
so
goofy.

You
have
done
commercials
and
reality
shows
before.
Was
movies
always
a
larger
plan
for
you?
How
difficult
was
to
reach
to
this
position?

Difficult
is
an
understatement
when
you
come
with
no
(film)
background.

After

Bigg
Boss
a
lot
of
work
was
coming
my
way
and
the
money
was
good,
too.

You
get
lost
with
so
much
work
because
you’re
confused
about
what’s
right
for
you.

Or
what
if
you
do
something
and
then
they
typecast
you?

I
couldn’t
have
taken
such
chances,
although
they
say
you
must
because
you
have
to
pay
your
bills.

And
I
don’t
know
how
many
opportunities
life
would
give
me,
right?

It’s
been
a
journey
full
of
ups
and
downs
but
I
truly
feel
blessed
that
I
have
got
Warda,
who
saw
this
ad
of
mine
and
believed
in
me.

The
industry
is
full
of
people
giving
all
sorts
of
opinions
and
suggestions.
How
do
you
make
sure
to
rise
above
that
and
stay
true
to
yourself?

Honestly,
God
is
very
kind.

I’ve
always
been
complimented
with
comments
like,
‘You’re
perfect
heroine
material’,
‘Your
audition
was
super’…

But
somehow
that
never
translated
into
work.

I
think
when
it
has
to
happen,
it
happens.

At
one
point,
even
my
mom
and
dad
were
irritated
and
were
giving
up.

Thing
is,
it’s
not
just
my
journey
now,
it
is
their
journey
as
well.

I
have
left
home,
come
here
and
I’m
waiting
for
the
right
chance.
They
want
to
see
me
growing
and
achieving,
so
you
have
to
constantly
work
to
prove
yourself.

Where
do
you
come
from?

I
was
born
and
raised
in
Delhi
but
Mumbai
is
my
home
now.
My
parents
still
live
in
Delhi.

What’s
the
struggle
like
for
an
outsider?

I
used
to
give
a
lot
of
auditions.

When
things
were
not
working
in
my
favour,
I
decided
to
go
to
Los
Angeles
to
see
what
is
happening
in
a
different
part
of
the
world.

There,
I
worked
on
my
craft.

I
thought
Hollywood
was
better.
If
you
fit
the
role,
they
will
definitely
call
you.

But
there
is
a
larger
picture
to
it,
like
business
is
involved
and
everything.
No
one
comes
out
of
the
blue
and
says
we
were
waiting
for
you.

But
yeah,
it’s
not
just
hardships.
It’s
been
good
as
well.

The
courage
that
I
have
now,
I
don’t
know
where
I
got
it
from.
Some
divine
energy
pushes
you,
if
you’re
meant
for
it.

Is
me
luck

ka
bohot
bada
haath
hota
hai,
it
can’t
be
just
your
push
and
pull
or
your
auditions
or
your
talent.
You
make
it
in
the
industry
because
of
your
attitude,
not
just
your
talent.

Patience
is
also
very
important.

You
have
over
10
million
followers
on
Instagram.
Does
that
help
in
getting
work?

It’s
very
important
how
you
project
yourself
on
social
media.

When
I
entered

Bigg
Boss,
people
didn’t
know
much
about
my
work
but
they
knew
who
I
was.
That’s
because
of
my
social
media
presence.
So
it
has
definitely
played
a
major
role
in
my
career.

But
yeah,
I’m
very
selective
about
what
I
post,
as
in
I
can’t
do
random
Reels.

Eventually,
my
focus
is
on
fetching
good
films
and
characters.
But
if
you’re
too
much
out
there,
people
will
say
your
image
is
getting
diluted,
why
should
I
cast
someone
who’s
already
been
seen
so
much?

It
is
a
huge
investment
to
build
your
social
media
page.
It
doesn’t
come
for
free.
You
have
to
sit
on
the
content
every
day.

How
expensive
is
to
be
an
actor?

It
is
a
very
heavy
bill!
(Laughs)

To
be
an
actor
is
still
fine
but
being
a
star
is
the
biggest
deal.

You
have
to
plan
photoshoots,
and
get
a
team
of
really
good
people
working
on
it.
And
they
will
be
quite
expensive.

Parents
usually
don’t
understand
this.
We
don’t
come
from
the
background
where
an
investment
means
paying
Rs
5
lakh,
Rs
6
lakh
for
a
photoshoot.

And
there
is
no
right
strategy
or
formula
to
stardom.
You
have
to
put
in
constant,
never-dying
efforts.

It
is
very
tough!

You
did
not
have
a
single
release
after

Ranchi
Diaries.
How
did
you
cope
during
that
time?

Work
was
coming
my
way
but
my
mindset
was
different.

When
you
are
an
outsider
and
you
get
a
job,
you
feel
like,
‘Oh
my
God,
I
have
arrived
and
now
I
am
the
next
big
thing.’

Cut
to
no
work
coming
your
way
and
you
are
like,
what
went
wrong.

But
you
have
to
believe
that
you’re
a
star
because
you
are
your
own
cheerleader.
No
one
else
is
going
to
do
that
for
you.

After

Ranchi
Diaries,
people
said
your
PR
needs
to
be
very
strong.
You
need
to
call
up
makers.

At
that
time,
I
decided
to
really
work
on
my
craft.
So
I
headed
to
Los
Angeles
for
two
years
and
went
to
the
Lee
Strasberg
Theatre
and
the
New
York
Film
Academy
to
study.

After
that,
I
started
getting
work
offers
during
the
pandemic.
I
started
auditioning
for
OTT
and
eventually
got

Bigg
Boss.

I
had
also
shot
for
this
Vimal
ad
with
Shah
Rukh
(Khan)
sir,
Ajay
(Devgn)
sir
and
Akshay
(Kumar)
sir.

You
worked
with
Anupam
Kher
in

Ranchi
Diaries.
Do
you
consider
him
as
your
mentor?

He
is
an
ocean
of
knowledge
and
such
a
great
actor!

Whenever
I
need
guidance,
he’s
always
there.
Of
course,
I
don’t
want
to
bug
with
my
smallest
calls,
he
is
a
busy
person.

I
used
to
speak
to
Satish
sir
a
lot
(the
late
Satish
Kaushik).
He
was
my
lucky
charm.

Even
Akshay
(Kumar)
sir
is
my
lucky
charm.

The

Ranchi
Diaries
trailer
was
launched
by
Akshay
sir
and
then
I
did
this
ad
with
him
at
the
start
of
my
career.
Now
I
am
doing
a
film
with
him
even
though
my
journey
has
just
begun.
It
usually
takes
four-five
years
to
have
that
foothold
in
the
industry.

Despite
all
hardships
and
struggles,
what
is
the
biggest
joy
for
you
about
being
an
actor?

That
I
am
able
to
pursue
my
dreams.

People
love
me.

People
recognise
me.

Sometimes,
the
Zomato
delivery
guy
wants
to
click
a
picture
with
you
at
your
doorstep.

My
car
has
gone
for
servicing
so
I
ended
up
going
in
rickshaws
and
they
recognise
me
from
ads.

When
I’m
walking
my
dog,
people
stop
by
and
say,
‘Oh,
we
loved
you
in

Bigg
Boss.’

I
was
shooting
for

Housefull
in
a
village
and
there,
people
were
coming
over
and
clicking
pictures
with
me.

It
is
a
truly
amazing
feeling.