Pranitaa Pandit: Actors must observe and take inspiration from their surrounding… external awareness can lead to internal awareness  

For every human being, both career and work are important because it is eventually survival of the fittest, says Pranitaa Pandit. The actor says that there is a lot of competition but as far as showbiz is concerned, the competition is immense.

“You’ve to keep telling yourself that it is okay and have faith and if it means to be it will be. Give it your best. If we start thinking and get into that loop of rejection then it really plays up on your mind. I keep telling myself that good things will happen,” she continues, “The amount of rejection an actor faces I don’t think anyone can ever face in any other career, and that actually makes us more strong and sensitive. My point of view on this entire thing is that it is inevitable. Showbiz is full of rejections as well as opportunities. We just have to be very mindful and keep going on. Of course every actor is hungry for meaty roles… But a lot of times things don’t work out and sometimes they do. So you cannot give up. It’s important to have a life parallel to this career, otherwise you can really get sucked in.”

Pranitaa’s inspiration in acting is every human being she comes across. Her observation of people around having different perceptions, thought process, body languages, and looks, helps her.

“As an actor we can get to play anyone from a beggar to a mad man. So you have to take inspiration out of every single opportunity and you have to observe your surroundings really well. External awareness can lead to internal awareness,” adds the actor, known for TV shows Kasam, Kawach, Uttaran and Jamai Raja.

Talking more about the pros and cons of the profession, Pranitaa shares, “The kind of attention, recognition and love you get is immense. This is something that no other profession gives you. Also the respect and love we receive are the biggest plus. For an actor, the kind of rejection that one faces is the biggest con. There are equal amounts of opportunities and rejections. On TV, whatever must be happening in your personal life, if you are doing a daily show you have to shoot. You can’t call in sick like in other professions. In our work the commitment level is quite high.”

Ambition, fame and money can be elusive. How much is too much is subjective. Everyone is chasing the same and all these create a lot of personal and professional conflicts especially in metros where the pace of life is very fast courtesy the chase.

“I know everyone is chasing ambition, fame and money and fair enough you should chase it but there has to be a balance. But, you should not get carried away. I have friends today who are just constantly working on their Instagram accounts because they feel that if I don’t have enough followers I will not get good work. They are just going out of their way to make things happen. It is a competitive world and the virtual world has only added to it. People are going crazy over validation and getting attention. I feel sad about the fact that sometimes we just feel that is the only way where you actually have to put out your entire personal life in public or create some extraordinary  amazing content to get eyeballs. I think we have to have a balance. We should not mix our personal and professional lives, you need to find the balance,” she says.