‘Janhvi Kapoor was 20, Khushi was 17 when Sridevi died’: Anshula Kapoor on reaching out to step-siblings, building relationship from a ‘blank state’

Speaking to The Quint, she said, “When we reached out to them, and I can speak for myself and not for my brother, I was coming from the point of what I went through when my mother died. I didn’t want them to go through that alone because I would know the beats that they would go through. That was the conversation that me and Bhaiya had that we don’t want them to navigate this situation alone because they were much younger than what we were when our mom died. They had to go through the same beats when they were 17 and 20. That’s young, we reached out to them to support them.” Anshula also shared that brother Arjun wanted to be there for their father Boney Kapoor “in every way possible” during this difficult time.

She admitted that she truly began to get to know Janhvi and Khushi only after Sridevi’s death in 2018. She said, “When we got to know each other from 2018 onwards, it was like a blank slate. It gave us time and space to know each other into who we are today, versus having pre-conceive notions or what the family has told us about each other.”

Lauding Janhvi and Khushi for navigating the showbiz world and handling social media criticism, she said, “They have involved into two different individuals and strong women and seeing them do that has been empowering for me.”

She added, “They have entered into cinema when social media is at its most volatile when the trolls are louder than the praises that you get. And they had to navigate that while having to navigate the grief of losing a mother. They have done it beautifully. They have shown me what life skills I need to work on.”

Talking about their bond today, she said, “They also know that I am their older sibling, come what may. We don’t judge each other. The four of us, it’s a safe space for conversation. Janhvi has taken it up on himself to make sure that we spend more time together.”