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Journalism of Courage
She played a classmate to Amitabh Bachchans progeria-affected Auro in the 2009-movie Paa. As news came in that 14-year old Taruni Sachdev was among those killed in Mondays Nepal plane crash,there was shock among those who had worked with the bubbly child model and budding actor.
Taruni was travelling with her mother Geeta Sachdev,who also died.
The news hasnt yet sunk in, said Paa director R Balki. Abhishek,who also acted in the film,tweeted: Lost one of my cutest co-stars… Speechless.
Introduced to showbiz through Bol Baby Bol,a singing show hosted by Adnan Sami,Taruni started working in advertisements when she was four. On TV,she also appeared in some episodes of Kya Aap Paanchvi Paas Se Tez Hain ?
It was the 2004 Rasna commercial that made her a household name at the age of six. Says Ronak Shah,associate V-P of Mudra Ahmedabad: A girl called Ankita was known as the Rasna girl for years. We needed another child who would match her charm and popularity. After auditioning many children,we selected Taruni.
Tarunis popularity increased when she did Malayalam films Vellinakshathram and Sathyam,directed by Vinayan. She was just five and I wondered how she would render Malayalam dialogues. Taruni,however,was very confident. She would listen to the dialogues a couple of times and then say them aloud. After the films release,she came to be known in the south as the baby girl next door.
A couple of months ago,Taruni was back in Kerala to shoot for an advertisement. Vinayan couldnt meet her. I told her that in three to four years,I will cast you as an actress. She was very excited.
