Huma Qureshi has opened up about her experience dealing with the success of her debut film, Gangs of Wasseypur. Despite the film being seen as a major milestone in her career, Huma revealed that it actually made her feel insecure about herself and everything else. She expressed, “I got my first brush with success pretty early on. Maybe it was just this enthusiasm of getting out of the house and being (an actor) and then Gangs of Wasseypur happened. By 2010 I moved to Mumbai and by 2012 the film was out and it became this big hit in India. My world just exploded.”
She further explained that the film was not a glamorous affair, sharing, “This was a film where they paid me some Rs 75,000, that’s it…There were no five-star hotels, cushioning of vanity vans or an army of people (following you). It was like a bunch of people, who went to Varanasi for three months, shot and came back. Nobody had any clue what was happening.”
Reflecting on her mindset at the time, Huma admitted, “So when it came out, I was like, ‘Whoa! I am the lead in the film? My face is on the hoarding?! Should I have gotten paid more for it? Is this how movies get made?'”
She revealed that she felt lost after her quick entry into the industry, stating, “Because for me coming to Mumbai, meeting people, doing auditions, getting a film happened rather quickly, and I didn’t have a game plan after that. I was lost in choice…I was always working, and that was never a problem, but I was lost in myself. Like finding my own voice, finding myself, who I was, what kind of films I like to do, what I didn’t like to do.”
Huma acknowledged her insecurities, sharing, “I was insecure about everything, about myself, how I looked, at the work that was happening. Maybe insecure about why am I not doing the films others are doing. I didn’t have anyone to talk to…I had a younger brother in the film business, who was also figuring his way out. There was a shoulder to cry on, but really no one to help you navigate that situation. But I never thought of giving up.”
Huma Qureshi recently appeared in the film Double XL with Sonakshi Sinha.
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