Initially, it was tough going for Hina Khan in YR

When you watch Hina Khan enact the role of Akshara in Yeh Rishta Kya Kehlata Hai (Star Plus) with aplomb and grace, the first thing that comes to mind is that this Kashmiri gal from Delhi is a born actress.

However the truth is a bit different. According to our source, initially Hina found the going quite tough. Like many other freshers, she was unable to deliver the goods with finesse. It would take her long before even one scene could be canned. The poor thing would often break into tears as she could not cope with the pressure. Here our source adds that, given the tough job of delivering lot many scenes every day, producer Rajan Shahi (Director's Kut) got a tutor to teach her the art on the sets.

When we contacted Shahi, he simply said, "Grooming is part of every actor/actress' learning curve and the idea is to spot the rough diamond and then cut it to be the best. Not every talent, even after grooming, can do that."

Another source on the set defended Hina by saying that one needs to understand that she comes from a very conservative background. But what worked in her favour was that, being an educated girl, she would pick up what we would tell her quickly compared to other girls whom we had earlier launched.

The source added that Rajan had seen the spark in Hina at the Delhi auditions itself when she said the lines in her own style. But it was not easy to convince her parents to send her to Mumbai. Once that was accomplished, Rajan then held some quick workshops which would allow her to get into the skin of the character. He does the same for all his discoveries be it Sara Khan or Parul Chauhan (Sapna Babul Ka...Bidaai), amongst others, observed our informer.

The source also admitted that initially the Producer would sometimes lose his cool on Hina's non performance, given the telecast deadlines. But soon, he found a way to get the hidden actor in her out in the open. Once he even went to the extent to tell her that he would not give her food or water till she gets the scene right. Though it took as long as two hours, but finally she broke free from her inhibitions and came out with a superb performance.

We then tried to contact Hina to get her side of the story but she was unavailable for comment.