Pranutan Bahl is aware of the legacy she is carrying forward as Nutan’s granddaughter and Mohnish Bahl’s daughter. But she isn’t letting the pressure bog her down. During the promotion of her debut film Notebook, she says, “I do not think about pressure, otherwise your approach becomes negative. It’s a good responsibility on my shoulders and I hope that I live up to it. I just want to work harder.”
The young actress is making her debut under Salman Khan Films (SKF), opposite Zaheer Iqbal. The film is releasing on Friday (March 29). “I know people are going to compare me to my grandmother and all these comparisons are just going to encourage me to work harder and up my skills,” she adds.
Pranutan says that her character in Notebook is pure, loyal to what she believes in, stubborn. And also someone who loves children. “This is something which is quite common between my character and I. I love kids and I am very stubborn too,” she says.
Pranutan, whose father (Mohnish) started off by playing negative roles and moved on to play character roles, has advised her to be sincere. The debutant actress says, “He has kind of told me to be honest to whatever I do and be sincere with my work.”
Ask her which movies of her grandmother and father are her favourites and she replies, “When it comes to grandmother, I love Bandini. I admire the fact that she portrayed every single character of hers with such innocence and purity. I loved my father in Maine Pyaar Kiya. In fact, it would be a matter of great pride if I get to do a film with him.”
The actress says that she always wanted to be an actor and was sure about it from a young age. “I started auditioning from 2016 and for two and half years, I auditioned continuously. Then one day, I got a call for Notebook and had a five-hour long audition with our director Nitin Kakkar,” she says.
But not once during the numerous auditions did Pranutan use her grandmother or father’s name. “I did not mention my surname so no one got to know who I was. I did not want use my connections because I wanted to know if I am worthy enough to be an actor. I believe you should get an opportunity because your talent deserves it and not because of your connections,” she explains.
Talking about her mentor-producer Salman Khan, she says, “I am lucky that I get to hangout with him. I tend to take advice from him and be inspired by him, which is great.”
