Manushi Chhillar reflects on her non-film roots: ‘I need to catch up on all the learning’

Actor Manushi Chhillar was last seen in Bade Miyan Chote Miyan, which tanked at the box office. The film, also starring Akshay Kumar, Tiger Shroff, and Alaya F, had a budget of Rs 350 crore, but earned a meagre Rs 65 crore. In an exclusive conversation with SCREEN about the box office, at IFFI 2024, Manushi says, “Box office is one of the parameter with which you measure the success of a certain film. However, different films have a different budget with which its made. A film could do 200 crores, but if it was made in 400 crores, then what’s the point? You can’t have one bracket measurement for all. There was a time when a film’s success was determined on the basis of its days in theatre, then the weekend box office collection, then the 100 crore club, so the parameters kept changing.”

She adds, “But at the end of the day, it is a business and money is being invested in it. It has to be profitable. That will always be the way to determine the success of a film. Box office has always been volatile and it is today too.” Having said that, the actor mentions that even if the content of a film is good, it needs a commercial push to bring in the audience and box office numbers. “We have seen over time that certain films are not working. For some, people have said that they are way ahead of time, so maybe they will be appreciated after a few years. Even if you have good content, but if you don’t shout to show that good content, how will you pull in the audience? Laapataa Ladies also did better after releasing on OTT.”

ALSO READ | A vegetarian since childhood, Manushi Chhillar started eating meat for Bade Miyan Chote Miyan: ‘My father would forcefully make me finish my food’

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Manushi Chhillar also says that between mainstream commercial cinema and art cinema, she doesn’t have a preference. “Films are like art – it cannot be simplified and you can’t categorize it. We need to like the role and film that we are taking up and be in sync with the director. These three are important aspects. You can call it a commercial or cinematic film, every film is an art for me. There are different kinds of films, its about you picking the right filmmaker,” she says.

Manushi does not belong to a film family, hence its an even more difficult journey for her, as she says, “Films are a very tricky business. Considering the fact that I am not from films and I have entered at a time when things are even more unpredictable than what it used to be, I need to make sure that I am doing a good job. I have to catch up on all the learning that I missed growing up, because I am not from a film family and I was only busy studying.”

Manushi Chhillar attended the opening ceremony performer at International Film Festival Of India (Goa). Talking about the same, she tells us, “I have grown up performing on stage and I have always enjoyed it. I was dancing on the stage after a decade and that too in front of my parents. It felt almost like school again. IFFI was my very first film festival two years ago, when I was given the best actor award there. So, it was a great feeling. Its amazing to see cinema being celebrated.”