Ayesha Jhulka on why she quit films: ‘Being glam girl is fine if you’re a newcomer, but every actress wants an upgrade’

Ayesha Jhulka was recently seen in the web series, Happy Family Conditions Apply. The actor made her comeback with Tanuja Chandra’s series Hush Hush in 2022 after a gap of some years. In a new interview, Ayesha spoke about why she quit acting, calling it a ‘conscious choice’. Ayesha has acted in films such as Aamir Khan-starrer Jo Jeeta Wohi Sikandar (1992) and Himmatwala (1998), among many others. Also read: Ayesha Jhulka says ‘I’m not a big name, I am also not a nobody’

Ayesha also opened up about her ‘glam girl’ image, and said that being seen as glamorous is fine when you are a newcomer, but as you grow in the profession, ‘you also want to be known for your acting chops’. Ayesha spoke about her initial years in the Hindi film industry, and said while the characters she was playing had different names, ‘they were almost similar’.

“It (her break from acting) was a conscious choice. I felt that if I associate myself with a project, I should be able to add value to it. But that can only happen if I am given a chance to perform. If that was not happening and I was being treated as a prop in a project, then it was not really worth my time. So I had to put an end to those roles. Every actress wants an upgrade, wants to be known for her acting skills and not just as a glam girl. I wanted that too…. When I joined the Hindi film industry, while the characters I played had different names, they were almost similar,” Ayesha told The Times of India.

“I had nothing against what was being offered to me, but I felt I was doing the same kind of films, I had to be a clotheshorse, do the typical song-dance routine, get romanced by the hero and look beautiful. Being a glam girl is fine when you are a newcomer, but as you grow in the profession, you also want to be known for your acting chops. The cinema I was doing no longer satisfied me, I was hungry work that tapped my potential and that wasn’t happening. Taking a break from acting and devoting my energies elsewhere made sense,” she added.

Ayesha was seen alongside Raj Babbar, Ratna Pathak Shah and Atul Kulkarni in the comedy series titled Happy Family: Conditions Apply. The 10-episode series premiered on Prime Video on March 10. Created and directed by Aatish Kapadia and JD Majethia, the series also stars Sanah Kapur, Meenal Sahu, Raunaq Kamdar, Ahaan Saboo, Swati Das, Kariuki Margaret Wanjiku, Paresh Ganatra, Pranoti Pradhan, Samar Vermani and Neha Julkat.