The thought of being sidelined didn’t come to my mind-Sahher Bambba

Shalabh Anand Bajpai (DNA; September 15, 2019)
It sometimes takes years for a newbie to get that big break in Bollywood. But not for Sahher Bammba, whose launch pad is Sunny Deol’s Pal Pal Dil Ke Paas, opposite the actor-filmmaker’s son Karan Deol. The small-town girl moved to Mumbai from Shimla, Himachal Pradesh, just eight months before signing this film. “This is what we call destiny,” Sahher smiles, as we catch up with her for a tête-à-tête. The debutante talks to us about her mantra to not only survive but also succeed in the industry and more.
How it began
The young actress says that she always wanted to be an actor but had no scope to follow her dreams in Shimla. After completing school, when she told her parents that she wanted to move to Mumbai, they were sceptical. “The city was new to me, unlike Delhi where we have family and friends. But I got admission in Jai Hind College in Travel & Tourism and shifted here. I was confused about how I would commute and whom I would talk to, etc., but I managed everything somehow,” she states. Showbiz projects didn’t happen immediately, and a friend suggested that she audition for ads. That didn’t work out either, which made Sahher participate in a beauty pageant, which she went on to win. “After that, I received a call for Pal Pal… I had four rounds of auditions. It was the longest audition I ever gave. The last leg was directed by Sunny sir,” she recalls. Sahher admits that her family is conservative since they belong to a small town and they initially had a mixed reaction to her bagging the film. “When I told them about the offer, they were shocked at first but also relieved that I was achieving what I wanted to. So, as time passed, they got supportive,” she informs.
Not sidelined
The Gadar actor’s directorial for a debut is a big thing, of course, but Sunny’s sonny Karan (Rocky) is also being launched with the same film. Wasn’t she sceptical of getting the raw deal because he would be the priority? “No,” Sahher says emphatically, adding, “In fact, in spite of belonging to a non-filmy background, I was chosen by Sunny sir and cast opposite his son. This itself was a big deal for me. I thank him for that. The thought of being sidelined never came to my mind.”
Tough conditions to shoot
The movie, which sees Deol Jr as an adventure guide has been filmed in extreme weather conditions and locations. Sahher observes that as an audience, sequences seem so easy to film but that’s never the case. “Belonging to Himachal Pradesh, I’ve visited many places but I hadn’t been to the areas where we were shooting. I never imagined such locations could even exist and I was scared about how I would do the scene,” she confesses. “But by then, I was aware of how Sunny sir would handle a situation for Rocky and me. So, we trusted him blindly.” There was also the belief that if she gave her 100 per cent now, it would pay later that kept her going.
Films in all genres
After the release, Sahher has more projects lined up but it’s all in the pipeline and nothing is concrete yet. What kinds of movies would she be interested in being part of? “As an audience, I love watching rom-com. As an actor. I want to try as many genres I can,” she signs off.