EXCLUSIVE: Raksha Bandhan actor Sadia Khateeb reveals getting rejected for being more good looking than a big co-star

Sadia Khateeb made an impressive debut with Vidhu Vinod Chopra’s Shikara in 2020. The following period that should have been marked with more work, got marred with the pandemic for the newcomer and last month, she had her first massy release as she played Akshay Kumar’s sister in Aanand L Rai’s Raksha Bandhan. Recently, she indulged in an exclusive conversation with Bollywood Bubble where she spoke about her journey, working with Akshay, Vidhu and Aanand and also about getting rejected for being too good looking. Read excerpts from the interview here:

How was it working with Aanand L Rai for you?

“Fortunately, Aanand sir had seen Shikara, my first film. And from there it was in his head that I will be playing this part (Gayatri). And after Shikara, I was looking forward to work with my favourite directors and Aanand sir was definitely one of them. So, I reached out to him and he said that seeing me in Shikara didn’t feel to him as it was my debut, and it was a huge compliment coming from him.”

 

View this post on Instagram

 

A post shared by Sadia khateeb (@sadiaakhateeb)

You moved from Vidhu Vinod Chopra to Aanand L Rai, two renowned filmmakers. How different were the two experiences for you?

“These two are absolutely different institutions, like one is making engineers while other is making scientists, that’s how I can put it. There is only one similarity between them and that is their love and passion for cinema. I have seen them running from first floor to the third just to fix an artist’s hair. And I have seen that passion in each and every frame. I have seen Aanand sir loving his films like how much he loves his food. He is so emotional that he was like I don’t want to release Raksha Bandhan, I just want to keep it to myself.”

 

View this post on Instagram

 

A post shared by Sadia khateeb (@sadiaakhateeb)

You come from Jammu, where the exposure to acting as a profession might not be as much as in metro cities. So, how did your interest in acting originate?

“I was studying electrical engineering in my city when I got a message on Facebook from Mukesh Chhabra casting company saying they were making Laila Majnu. An agent there asked me to do one torch scene, which I did, and at the end I gave them my number. A few days later, I got a call saying directors Imtiaz Ali and Sajjad Ali wanted to meet me and I was like this is a lie. I told my mother and she was like human trafficking ke liye utha ke le jayenge tujhe, just block the number, so I did.

Cut to one year later, another casting associate at the company saw that same clip of mine and called me on facetime to test me. And then she came all the way to Jammu from Mumbai with the co-actor just to test me. She believed I was a natural but I was like who would convince my father as he wouldn’t let me quit my studies. So, she made Vidhu Vinod Chopra facetime with my father. Thankfully my father had seen 3 Idiots. Then my brother came into the picture and help convince my father to let me go to Mumbai.”

 

View this post on Instagram

 

A post shared by Sadia khateeb (@sadiaakhateeb)

But it seems like your actual struggle began after your debut…

“I was off Instagram for 3 years, even 4 months after Shikara’s release, I wasn’t on the platform. While I was exclusively working on Shikara, I had never met any casting director, done any auditions, had PR or anything. I had come straight from Kashmir and I was in a bubble with my life being from Bandra to home and back. The film released, and then the lockdown happened. It came as a blessing for me as I got the time to learn everything that I didn’t know before, and it was after my first film’s release. The entire struggle and journey began for me 4 months after Shikara’s release.”

 

View this post on Instagram

 

A post shared by Sadia khateeb (@sadiaakhateeb)

You started as a lead actor, so was there any apprehension choosing a secondary character in Raksha Bandhan?

“Honestly, there were a lot of apprehensions I had in the beginning but during the second lockdown, my father was in the ICU, and after coming out of it, the first call he made was to ask me to say yes to Raksha Bandhan. And I said, I will do everything just come out of the hospital.”

Your first film got into controversies for portraying the life of Kashmiri pandits, and then Raksha Bandhan was labelled regressive by many. So how does all this negativity affect you as a beginner?

“Nothing, it doesn’t affect me but it entertains me. My concern is what my next project will be, if my work is coming out well and if I am relating to the audience. I have no time to complain.”

 

View this post on Instagram

 

A post shared by Sadia khateeb (@sadiaakhateeb)

You worked with a star like Akshay in Raksha Bandhan. Was there any advice he gave you that stayed with you?

“‘Acha kaam ache kaam ko kheechta hai. Acha kaam karo, kaam aayega.’ He treated us like friends on set and that was real. He has given us so many good memories. Off set, he treated us like families and brought food for us from his house. I still remember that I was comparatively new at the time and he heard somewhere that I like non-veg, and I was missing Kashmiri food. So, one day he called me saying, ‘Aye Kashmiri, ye le,’ and when I asked what it was, he said Rogan Josh. He had it made at his home for me.”

 

View this post on Instagram

 

A post shared by Sadia khateeb (@sadiaakhateeb)

The film has a very emotion heavy scene where you pass away. What was your parents reaction to that whole sequence?

“They were crying because I died in Shikara as well na. They were like isko har film mein kyun maar dete hain. Maybe people don’t like her and people don’t love me, that’s why they kill me. (laughs)”.

You are quite good looking and we have seen such incidents in the industry where actors are rejected for being too pretty. Has something similar ever happened with you? 

“Haan, abhi hua and bahut gussa aaya. That happened a couple months back and I cried for it because I had been preparing for that project for such a long time. They said that my co-actor wasn’t good looking enough, you won’t get impressed by him, and he is a star. I would tell him someday. I was the first person selected for the film, he was cast later but because he was the bigger star, they couldn’t let go of him.”

 

View this post on Instagram

 

A post shared by Sadia khateeb (@sadiaakhateeb)

Which filmmakers are now on your wishlist?

“I want to work with all, I just want to know who wants to work with me (laughs).  I’d love to work with Anees Bazmee, Imtiaz Ali, Sanjay Leela Bhansali and I really want to be in a Sooraj Barjatya film.”

Also Read: Raksha Bandhan Review: This regressive Akshay Kumar starrer leaves you fuming and frustrated