1. Tell us about your background and journey.
Ooh, this is a tough one. I’m not sure how I can condense it all into a paragraph, but I’ll try. I was quite the nerd at school and I honestly still don’t understand why that gets a bad reputation. But anyway, you’d always find me with my books and I was so focused on doing really well academically.
Almost all of this pressure was from myself, I was a bit of a perfectionist and it was not very fun. The best (or worst?) part was that I did not like studying, I was only doing it for the grades.
I did it anyway, the whole physics, chemistry, math, computer science thing and everyone in my family was so sure I’d be an engineer or an architect. After writing my NATA (architecture entrance exam), I realized that this is not at all what I wanted to be doing.
I’d never be really happy if I pursued this but I didn’t know how to say this out loud when there were so many expectations on me. I eventually spoke to a mentor, and a career counselor who helped me realize that I had to be doing my passion: being an artist.
It was quite the challenge convincing my mom and dad that this is what I wanted to do. I decided on doing Visual Communication and that did not go down well, haha. Thankfully, my mom was pretty supportive and this helped a lot.
Now, of course, they are both really encouraging of my decision and I am immensely grateful for that. In terms of being a performing artist, I unfortunately could not pursue my first love - ballet, as much as I’d have liked to.
I had an unfortunate major injury after my 12th board exams while dancing and couldn’t dance for a year. I started once again and was working on an ad when I fell again, after which I had to have surgery.
My knee has not yet regained the strength it had, but this obstacle helped me venture into acting (thanks to an audition by The Little Theatre that my mom saw in the newspaper). This is where I received my first couple years of training and experience and I truly fell in love with it.
I met a great group of supportive people and an artistic community that helped me dream bigger. I briefly worked at a media company, ‘Fully Filmy’, which gave me some professional experience and also opened me up to both praise and criticism from the general audience.
The criticism was really hard to deal with and felt like a lot more but it taught me to learn to power through. I had, by then, got into NYU Tisch School of Arts (I will always be humbled by this), and I left for New York to complete my MA in Performance Studies.
2. Did you ever think or dream of being an actor?
Honestly, yes. But it felt like a pipe dream; like one of those things I’d dream of as I fell asleep and that’s all it was. The reality now of me having acted professionally and pursuing it just feels so overwhelming.
As much as I imagined it as a kid, I never thought it’d be a real thing. But this is where I want to be, where I have to be. Good cinema has made such a difference in my life, and the life of many.
I think it is a great way for sending out some really good messages, for inspiring and for helping people dream big. You know the cliché saying of ‘finding my calling’. It truly feels like this is my calling; it’s just a really hardcore industry so it means I have to put all I have into it and I’m ready for that.
3. How can one approach their career and have the confidence and belief to become an actor?
I feel like this is such a specific thing to each person. I know I struggled a lot and truth be told, I still do and so do some of the really big actors. But, I can tell you what worked for me and if it helps someone else, that would make me happy!
This might sound banal, but finding who I really am authentically was huge. And this is not easy, it takes years and honestly sometimes, a whole lifetime. I feel like I’ve taken large strides in understanding who I am, what works for me and what I am capable of, all of which helps greatly in confidence and self-belief.
This is thanks to a combination of various things; good mentors, technical training, therapy, experimentation, making mistakes -- lots of them and learning to accept them and grow from them, and being honest with myself.
Some things that might help are positive affirmations, reading books about the art, experimenting with what works for you - you could do this with the help of trusted friends, a supportive community of other artists, and/or mentors.
I think it’s really important to find the trust in yourself and walk the fine line of self-awareness and self-love, and not egotism or narcissism.
And after all this, it’s crucial to know and accept that there will be days when you feel like you’re taking a step back and to not let yourself fall into a rabbithole but learn to understand why it happens, how you feel and use it as a learning experience.
4. For a complete outsider with inroads, what advice would you like to give?
Work, work, work. I am a complete outsider and I’ve been working for the past six years and am yet to really make it. So, know that it is a really hard road but if this is your passion, if this is what wakes you up in the morning, and you put your heart into it - you can make it.
Yes, there is definitely a factor of luck and destiny involved, but just keep doing your best, and trust that the universe will look out for you. Another thing I would say, is to know your limits. I mean this in multiple ways but positive; don’t overwork yourself and stretch yourself too thin.
Work on expanding your limits, but don’t recklessly push physical, emotional and mental limits. And if you do, be kind to yourself. Also, ethical and moral limits. Everyone has a different moral compass; just be wary of not doing something that won’t let you sleep at night and eat you up inside.
That can be anything and varies from person to person. In today’s age of social media, it’s so easy for something to bite you in the back years later. So make sure, whatever you do, you’re honest with yourself and it feels right in your heart.
5. What is your mantra of success?
This could change as time goes but right now it is, ‘Be real. Be loud. Be bold.’ It speaks to things I stand by and believe are so important when it comes to success, and as much as I mean success professionally, I also mean just in myself; ‘What will make me feel like I did something to be proud of?’
For me that means, taking a stand when needed, being strong enough to push boundaries, being authentic.
6. Where does your inspiration lie?
Cliché again but my family. My dad is the most hard-working and resilient person I know, my mom - the most empathetic and my brother - just the most kind-hearted and loving.
And my late grandfathers and grandmothers who are constant pillars of support. They are the reason I work so hard; I want to make them proud.
7. Can you throw some light on the opportunities one gets as a dancer?Is formal training required or can one train themselves purely on the basis of talent?
There are tons of opportunities as a dancer; professional dancing and performing, choreography, teaching whether at a school or on your own, dance writer, reviewer (dance performances, musicals and such), dance arts administration, fitness instructor, you could even get a Masters or a PhD in dance and write books, research papers and pursue it academically if that’s your thing. This is not even the tip of the iceberg.
With dance, I think it is essential to get trained. That said, I know of people who are purely self-trained and it takes a very admirable, unique kind of discipline and perseverance to do that but it is possible.
With acting, I personally recommend training. Yes, it is possible to learn experientially which is what I did for a few years, but I’ve been doing an intensive acting program for the past year and I have learnt more in that time than I have in the previous few years. Technical training does give you a major advantage.
8. What piece of advice would you like to give to future and aspiring artists?
Can I totally plug my quote from before, ‘Be real. Be loud. Be bold.’ Haha, kidding (only slightly). Well, I would say, make sure you know that this is really what you want to do and then dive into it.
You know the thing they say about there being no shortcut for hard work. I used to disagree with that but now I’ve learned it is true. Reach out to people who could help you and find a supportive community of artists, be true to yourself, and just don’t give up on your dreams.
- Samyuktha Viswanathan
IG: samyuv08
- Interviewed By: Amruta Liz Binoy
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