Janhvi Kapoor: ‘Just because I never stood in line for auditions doesn’t mean…’

Janhvi Kapoor has faced jibes about nepotism ever since she stepped foot in the industry four years ago. Over the years, with acclaim for her performances in films like Good Luck Jerry and Gunjan Saxena: The Kargil Girl, the audiences have also warmed up to her to an extent. In a new interview, Janhvi opened up on her privilege and how she had once made peace with the audience never accepting her. Also read: Janhvi Kapoor says she was ‘overconfident’ people would see her 1st film Dhadak

While speaking to RJ Stutee on her show Aur Batao, Janhvi said, “I had made my peace with whether people will ever really accept me because of this whole baggage of privilege and nepotism. It’s surprising and very heartening with how lovely and appreciative people hav been because honestly I didn’t realise how desperate I had been for this feeling that audience accepts me. I think that has happened to some extent with Good Luck Jerry but there is a long way to go.”

Good Luck Jerry, directed by Siddharth Sen Gupta, sees Janhvi cast a Bihari immigrant in Punjab, who takes to drug peddling to earn money for her mother’s cancer treatment. The film has received positive reviews with praise for Janhvi’s performance. But some have questioned a person so privileged playing a middle-class girl.

Janhvi reacts, “Yes, I come from privilege. Just because my struggles in life have not been to put food on the table or to stand in line to audition for a film doesn’t mean I haven’t dealt with hardships. They have been extremely unrelatable hardships but hardships nonetheless. I am not asking for anyone’s sympathy. I’m just asking them to look at me with an open mind because I do work and try hard to entertain people.”

Janhvi will be next seen in Mili, a survival thriller that also stars Manoj Pahwa and Sunny Kaushal. Directed by Mathukutty Xavier, the film is a remake of his own Malayalam film Helen (2019). Janhvi also has Mr And Mrs Mahi and Bawaal in the pipeline.