Interview with Vaishnavi Dhanraj - article

Vaishnavi Dhanraj, last seen as Tasha in CID, will be seen playing Jhanavi, one of the twin daughters of Sia and Raghav in Naa Aana Iss Des Laado. Amba took her away while the family separated because of Bhanu Pratap. Here we talk to her more about her character on the show.

Tell us something about your character?
She is very strong and bold, the girl of today. She stands up for her rights and Amba has brought her up in such a way that she has ethics and values. But, she is a fun girl and likes being around people.

Have you followed the show?
I have seen a few episodes here and there but I didn't regularly watch it. But, every time I watched an episode, it would invariably have me glued to it. My mother regularly watches it and keeps updating me about the story.

Did you have to prepare for this character? Or did it come easily to you?
The character I play is a lot like me except in a few ways. Especially the way she talks on the show is a little rude; she has this tapori style of speaking. She uses a lot of slang so I needed to learn her language a bit. Apart from this, I had to learn taekwondo which I am still learning from watching YouTube! I have to drive cars and ride bikes which I already know.

So, do we get to see you riding bikes on the show?
I haven't shot any scene on the bike yet, except during one of our promotional campaigns in Delhi. I had to make an entry on my bike there.

Did you learn horse riding as your character lives with Amba who was a dacoit earlier?
No, they haven't asked me to learn it yet but if I get an opportunity I'll do it.

Has Jhanavi been told about the past of her family?
I think of Amba as my mother as she has never told me about my family's past and she pampers me a lot. I do not know if I will get to know of my family's past any sooner.

We hope the story does not turn to be like any other twin sister Hindi movie story?
I guess it is very much like that but that is what people like to see, one sister to be timid and the other, strong and confident. That helps balance things.

Is this character anywhere closer to the character you played in your previous show?
Yes, in a few ways both my characters have been very confident and disciplined. But, here Jhanavi is a lot more bubbly and disciplined for she practices taekwondo everyday in the morning. Tasha from CID was intelligent and so is Jhanavi but she talks a lot where my character in CID spoke only when required.

Have you met and bonded with everyone from the 'younger generation' of the show?
No, I haven't met anyone except for my sister (Simran Kaur) on the show and today we will be shooting together for the first time. And, I am sure we will have lots of fun together as we have just met and gelled well together. We'd be good friends working together as she is sweet and has no airs about her just like me. Both of us are down to earth.

How well do you think the audience will accept the leap?
I am 100 per cent sure they'll accept it because they loved Sia and Raghav and we are their children. They will want to look out for similarities between us and our parents. And even the story line is very interesting.

Post-leap are there any new issues being dealt with?
My other sister is going to stay with Ammaji and she is going to be dominated by Ammaji. As she thinks she is responsible for our parents' death. She thinks of her as a bad omen, which is yet another interesting track of the show. Though Ammaji has come to the city things are still the same with her. She still doesn't want a girl child.