Love, for me, is a lot about friendship: Ananya Panday

Actor Ananya Panday is currently gearing up for her upcoming film, Gehraiyaan. While she’s excited about it, she’s also mentally prepared about the conversation that will ensue post the release of the relationship drama that talks about infidelity. “We aren’t endorsing and glorifying infidelity; we’re simply observing how four people would behave in a certain situation. But everyone will have a different opinion on it and I’m looking forward to the debates going to take place,” she tells us.

Though infidelity is a deal-breaker for her, Panday says that working on the Shakun Batra directorial helped her not judge people and the decisions they make. Referring to it a learning experience, she also hopes that the film marks a new career trajectory for her. She says, “I’ve always been attracted to complex characters which help me evolve as an actor and hopefully, as a person too. I’m hoping this paves way for more complex, flawed, powerful and strong female characters.”

Talking about her idea of a perfect relationship, the 23-year-old shares, “While I was growing up, I watched a lot of Shah Rukh Khan’s (actor) films, and I wanted an ideal man who would be madly in love with me and look at me with love struck eyes. After a while, I realised that love is a lot about communication and friendship.”

Quiz her about her experience of working with actor Deepika Padukone on the project and the Student Of The Year 2 (2019) actor says, “I’ve admired her as an actor my whole life. I admire the choices she has made, the characters she has picked up and the way she has played them. She’s as beautiful on the inside as on the outside. She’s really warm and loving to everyone. She set the right tone and vibe on set every day while we worked together.”