‘It Has Been A Box Of Surprises’

‘My
journey
has
just
been
so
different.
Each
character
has
been
so
different.’

After
making
her
presence
felt
in
the
Southern
film
industry
with

Arjun
Reddy,
Mahanati
and
a
cameo
in

NTR:
Kathanayakudu,

Shalini
Pandey
made
her
Bollywood
debut
in

Jayeshbhai
Jordaar,
then
acted
in

Maharaj.
Now
in
the
Web
series

Dabba
Cartel
she
gets
to
act
with
Shabana
Azmi,
Jyotika,
Nimisha
Sajayan
and
Anjali
Anand.

“When
I
grow
up,
I’d
like
to
be
like
Shabana
ma’am,
the
way
she
carries
herself
with
so
much
grace
and
dignity
and
the
way
she
uplifts
younger
women,”
Shalini
tells

Subhash
K
Jha.

That’s
a
lovely
rounded
thoughtful
performance
in

Dabba
Cartel.
How
did
this
interesting
project
come
your
way?

Excel
reached
out
to
my
team
and
when
I
heard
that
there’s
Shabana
Azmi,
of
course
I
had
to
say
yes.
But
also
there
is
Excel,
there
is
Netflix,
it
was
a
great
package.
Also,
all
the
ensemble
cast
is
so
lovely.

Then
when
I
read
the
script
and
heard
the
narration,
I
realised
that
Raji
is
such
an
endearing
character.
She
had
such
a
good
arc
and
I
had
to
play
it,
so
it’s
a
great
opportunity
that
came
my
way
and
I’m
very
grateful
for
that.

Were
you
not
intimidated
by
the
prospect
of
working
with
these
formidable
actresses?
What
was
it
like
to
work
and
interact
with
them?

I
was
very
excited
to
work
and
meet
these
amazing
women,
especially
Shabana
Azmi.

My
mom
has
been
the
biggest
fan
of
Shabana
Azmi
and
she
wished
and
hoped
that
I
work
with
her.

I
was
very
excited
when
I
got
to
know
that
I’d
be
sharing
screen
space
with
her.

Also
the
opportunity
to
be
working
with
such
great
actors.

It
was
lovely
working
with
these
actors
because
you
get
to
learn
so
much.

They
are
all
different
people
and
we
had
so
many
stories
to
exchange.
I
got
to
learn
so
much
from
Shabana
ma’am,
from
Jyotika,
Nimisha,
Anjali,
and
also
male
actors.

Everyone
in
the
cast
is
so
amazing.
I
wish
I
had
more
scenes
with
Gajraj
sir
(Gajrao
Rao).
It
was
lovely
working
with
all
these
people.

Many
of
your
sequences
are
with
Shabana
Azmi.
What
were
your
takeaways
from
associating
with
such
an
institution?

We
all
love
Shabana
Azmi.
We
all
admire
her
work.
I
have
seen
her
work.
I
have
loved
her
through
my
mum.

The
first
movie
that
I
saw
of
her
was

Makdee
and
I
was
a
huge,
huge
fan,
but
I
fell
in
love
with
her
when
I
met
her
and
I
got
to
work
with
her.

When
I
grow
up,
I’d
like
to
be
more
like
her,
the
way
she
carries
herself
with
so
much
grace
and
dignity
and
the
way
she
uplifts
younger
women.

From

Arjun
Reddy
to

Dabba
Cartel,
how
do
you
see
your
journey
so
far?

My
journey
has
just
been
incredible.
It
has
been
a
box
of
surprises.
I
just
think
I’ve
grown
as
an
actor.

My
journey
has
just
been
so
different.
Each
character
has
been
so
different.
I
am
so
fortunate
that
I
got
to
work
with
such
lovely
and
different
directors
at
such
a
young
age.

I
am
also
looking
forward
to
where
this
journey
takes
me
from
here.

Dabba
Cartel
is
such
a
special
project,
it’s
going
to
do
wonders
for
me
and
I’m
very
hopeful
for
this
show
and
the
character.

In
hindsight,
how
do
you
feel
about
your
character
tolerating
so
much
toxicity
in

Arjun
Reddy?

I
play
my
character
and
I
do
not
judge
it.
I’m
an
actor
and
I’m
supposed
to
play
different
characters
and
that’s
what
I
thrive
for.

It
was
my
first
film.
I’m
grateful
for
Preeti
because
it
changed
my
life
and
that
was
my
stepping
in
the
industry
as
an
actor.