Janhvi Kapoor says she never thought of Homebound as a career milestone: ‘Abhi kaun troll karega mujhe?

‘I couldn’t connect with Homebound,’ says Vishal Jethwa

Vishal Jethwa said, “I am not very proud to say this but when I first watched the film with Ishaan… personally, I couldn’t understand the film and I couldn’t connect with it. But finally, when I watched the same film at Cannes, the experience was extremely different. After that I didn’t care to read critical reviews as much, but some people from India called me and told me they loved the film. Indians are very excited to watch this film, especially knowing it is being made by Masaan director Neeraj Ghaywan. The depth of friendship that Homebound navigates is something very rare in cinema.”

‘We didn’t see Homebound as a career high,’ says Janhvi Kapoor

Actor Janhvi Kapoor, who was also part of the interview, shared her experience of doing Homebound and said she never saw it as an individual career high, as the film seemed much bigger than fulfilling personal ambitions.

She said, “I never really gave a thought to it as legitimacy or a career milestone while doing Homebound because I don’t know if any of us made it about ourselves. When we were shooting the film, there was a collective sense that we were trying to make something bigger than us. I know it sounds phony but I truly mean it. When it played at Cannes and the way people reacted to it, we never felt like: ‘People liked our work or film.’ It was more like we moved people and made them feel something deeply personal, or perhaps inspired them to be more empathetic individuals in a world so caught up in finding reasons to divide.”

She added, “I never got this feeling of: ‘Abhi kaun troll karega mujhe?’ It was not like that at all.”

ALSO READ | Satish Shah ragged me, yelled at me on the sets of Sarabhai vs Sarabhai, says Rajesh Kumar: ‘I had tears in my eyes, never brought wife on set because…’

Talking about the reaction they received at Cannes after its premiere, Janhvi said she felt happier for her co-stars Ishaan Khatter and Vishal Jethwa, as well as her director Neeraj Ghaywan, who she believed deserved the international recognition.

Starting with her Dhadak co-star Ishaan, Janhvi said, “Ishaan is one of the most talented actors we have in our country, and for whatever reasons I don’t think he has been given as much credit as he deserves within Indian cinema. To see him on a stage like this and being appreciated by the world, I felt like good people eventually get their due—the recognition.”

On Vishal, she said, “Vishal auditioned his ass off for this film. His journey from how he started getting into this world and how he is dealing with all these new scenarios, the performance he has given, and the kind of man I’ve seen him turn into in the past couple of months by dealing with people while never losing sight of who he is—all of it made me so proud. To see him on this world stage killing it… he started with a Gujju rap followed by a speech. He’s a charmer.”

Janhvi Kapoor also spoke about Neeraj Ghaywan: “Neeraj sir is the most honest filmmaker in this country. He practices what he preaches. He’s a great man who needs to be rewarded. The real thrill was to see so many immensely talented, deserving people get this world stage.”

Speaking about herself, Janhvi said she was simply happy to be part of it all—and to get to wear pretty dresses.

When Homebound premiered at Cannes

When Homebound premiered at Cannes in May, it received a nine-minute long standing ovation. It was the only Indian feature film selected for the prestigious Un Certain Regard section of the festival.

What is Homebound all about?

Directed by Neeraj Ghaywan and produced under Karan Johar’s Dharma Productions, Homebound is an adaptation of a 2020 New York Times article by Basharat Peer. It follows the story of two childhood friends and migrant workers who are caught in the COVID-19 lockdown.