I’m extremely excited about my Bollywood debut: Deeksha Joshi

‘Jayeshbhai’ has truly been making his ‘Jordaar’ presence felt with love pouring in from fans across the country. With Ranveer acing it as always, the film also features actor Deeksha Joshi making her Bollywood debut with Yash Raj Films who essays the role of Preeti, Jayesh’s sister. A prominent actor from the Gujarati film industry, Deeksha is known for her path-breaking performances in ‘Karsandas Pay and Use’, Dhunki (2019), Luv Ni Love Storys (2020) and Vaahlam Jaao Ne (2021) with actor Pratik Gandhi. Making a mark in her B-Town debut, Deeksha opens up about her experience, how she bagged the role, Ranveer’s energy on set and a lot more!

Tell us about your character? How similar or different is it from you as a person?

My character in the film is called Preeti and I play Ranveer Singh’s sister in the film. Preeti is very different from me as a person because the world of Jayeshbhai Jordaar is very different from the world that I belong to or most of us living in the metro city belong. It's a very different space, a different community and a very different way of living. Of course it's fictional but it’s also very sad. Preeti is very spontaneous. She this spunky woman who is always on her toes and is very street smart. She is someone who is righteous and at the same time has this naughtiness about her that me as a person, I don’t have. I'm more of an ambivert and Preeti would be a total extrovert given the circumstances. So yes, this is how different Preeti is from Deeksha Joshi.

This is your Bollywood debut. How does it feel?

Honestly, I’m extremely excited about my Bollywood debut. I've always been very grateful in life and I've been practising gratitude since quite some time now. So, I just keep reminding myself of the fact that this is a dream come true. It couldn't have been any better. Since childhood, whenever I would watch Yash Raj Films, it would never even strike that I will be a part of “YRF” ever so I’m extremely overwhelmed right now and I consider it one of my biggest opportunities so far. Also, what I'm happy about is that it's a very interesting character and to get an opportunity like this in your first attempt in Hindi is just insane I mean I don't even know how to thank the universe honestly.

How was the shoot experience with Ranveer Singh, Ratna Pathak & Boman Irani respectively? What was the takeaway that you derived working with each of them? Any learnings / memories on or off camera?

My experience shooting with Ranveer Singh was simply amazing. Through my interactions with him on set, I had the chance to learn a lot from him. I briefly got to understand his process from the outside and I feel that he's a very dedicated a very sincere actor. It's just beyond me to understand how he manages to be such a brilliant actor and such a mesmerising personality at the same time. His energy is infectious. I’m also an extremely energetic person when it comes to work so somewhere his energy used to affect which was the best part. Apart from Ranveer, Shalini too is a great human being. She’s very humble and I could really bond with her.

One word for Ratna ma’am – WOW! I got to learn so much from her from the few conversations we had. I had the opportunity to share so much with her through our conversation and I have a lot of gratitude in my heart because I got to work with her and I got to learn so much from her.

Coming to Boman Sir, he is just so humble and so much fun to be around. It just helps you understand how grounded you need to be as a person. I think Boman Sir is one of the most beautiful people I have come across from the industry and yes I just feel a lot of gratitude that I got to interact with both him and Ratna ma’am and understand the way they work. It used to be a delight to just see them work.

How was the experience with debutant director Divyang Thakkar?

I know Divyang since a really long time because we belong from the same industry that is the Gujarati film industry. He is also an actor in Gujarati industry. I remember when I was in college his first film ‘Kevi Rite Jaish’ had released and he and his co-actor had come to promote the film in my college. It was then that I had briefly met him and since then I was a fan of Divyang Thakkar and Pratik Gandhi. Later, Divyang even happened to call me to tell me that he also liked my work and one of my films called ‘Karsandas Pay and Use’ and that's how we bonded. So, when I heard that he's doing this film that he has written and now he’s directing this film called Jayeshbhai Jordaar honestly I felt so proud because here’s this person who is giving all of us immense hope that if you pursue your dreams you can go miles. He is truly that person for me. He is the inspiration for me as I’m also interested in writing and I've even written two scripts. So, I just feel that he's that dedicated and you know he's chased his dream and I just feel so proud and inspired by this energy that he exudes.

Also, as a director, he was just brilliant because he is someone who loves perfection so he will chase behind perfection until he gets the shot he really wants. That's the kind of work I have been wanting to do and I like doing so it was just great collaborating with him.

Memories / Anecdotes / fun moments from behind the scenes on sets that you recall?

All of the scenes were so special for me so it's difficult to pick out a memory. My whole Gujarati gang was there on the sets and we had a lot of fun. They were all the people who I’ve worked with in Gujarati films and people who I’ve admired watching in Gujarati films and working alongside them in a Hindi film was all the more amazing. So, Jayeshbhai Jordaar is always going to be very special for all of us who here from the Gujarati industry and were a part of the film because it just felt like home every time I saw them. Most of my memories that I recall are with these guys and of course with Divyang, Veronica the little girl Jia who plays Siddhi. I got to share my van with her and we'd play games and have a lot of fun. So, I think I had a great time with each and every actor on the set and with each and every person so I just feel I was it's a very warm experience.

What other projects do you have lined up?

So, I have a Hindi film and a couple of Gujarati films that are slated to release very soon. I'm also giving auditions for other Hindi web shows and movies so on the whole it's going to be a very hectic year for me. I'm shooting a web series right now and after this I have another film which is a festival film. So, it’s super busy but I’m truly looking forward to it because a lot of releases had come to a halt during the pandemic so all those are slated to happen now and at the same time new work is also coming suddenly so I'm just excited about it.

How did you make it to acting? What’s your background like?

I am originally from Uttarakhand. At present, my parents live in Ahmedabad and I live in Mumbai. I used to do theatre and plays since I was a kid as old as five to six years old in school and I just never gave up on performing arts since then. I used to sing, dance and even act and I remember I would participate in just about every singing, dancing and acting competition. My parents were always very supportive so they always pushed me so there was a lot of encouragement from home and that kind of led me towards opening up myself for something like acting.

Being an only child I used to self-talk a lot. I used to make like a lot of imaginary characters and talk to them and it’s funny how that turns out to be an acting exercise also which I used to subconsciously as a kid. So, yes it's been quite a journey. Also, I've always wanted to be a writer, a playwright and a theatre actor. I never imagined that I would make it to the screen because I used to be very conscious about my body and my looks but eventually I have been able to overcome it and I'm still growing and still embracing myself. In the beginning I enjoyed working in a couple of short films and that's how I discovered my love for the camera.