Kal Ho Naa Ho’s Jhanak Shukla reveals why she quit acting, talks about taking it up again: I don’t want to stop myself…

Jhanak Shukla, best known for her roles as a child actor in the TV show Karishma Kaa Karishma and the feature film Kal Ho Naa Ho, has spoken about quitting acting. In a new interview, Jhanak also revealed if she would want to take up acting as a career. She said that when she was a child she focussed on her education and later realised that she wasn’t interested in acting. However, Jhanak said that if she gets a good role, she might take it up. (Also Read | Karishma ka Karishma child actor Jhanak Shukla gets engaged; see pictures)

Jhanak, the daughter of actor Supriya Shukla, has featured in many films as well as TV serials. She played the character of Gia Kapur in Kal Ho Naa Ho (2003), alongside Shah Rukh Khan, Saif Ali Khan and Preity Zinta. In 2006, she starred with Rajit Kapoor, Konkona Sensharma, and Irrfan Khan in Deadline: Sirf 24 Ghante. Apart from Karishma Kaa Karishma, she featured in the series Son Pari, Hatim and Gumrah.

In an interview with Times of India, Jhanak said, “I didn’t quit acting intentionally, it happened on its own. I was a child artiste, but after a point my parents told me that I should also focus on my studies and pursue acting post-graduation if I wanted to. So, I immersed myself in my studies and by the time I completed my graduation, I wasn’t interested in acting.”

She also added, “I was keen on studying further, so I pursued archeology. During the lockdown, I did my MBA and have now decided to go to Ireland to further pursue masters in marketing. I will be travelling before the end of this month. However, in the future if I am offered a really good character in a web show, I may take it up. I don’t want to stop myself from doing anything that interests me. But I don’t want to be a full-time actor.”

Recently, Jhanak got engaged to her long-time boyfriend Swapnil Suryawanshi. On Instagram, she shared pictures of the Roka ceremony. Jhanak wrote, “Finally making it official! Roka ho Gaya (Roka has been done).” Her fiancé Swapnil is a fitness trainer.