Both former
Miss Supranational
winners,
Asha Bhat and
Srinidhi Shetty are looked at as promising names who people need to take seriously in
Kannada
film in the future. The two of them share a very special bond. Here's their friendship decoded.
Their friendship...Srinidhi: Asha was already a part of the Miss Diva team in 2014. I took part in the same pageant in 2016. I used to look up to her as she was an international pageant winner. Truth be told, I used to stalk her (laughs). She was a guest speaker during my pageant days and I wanted to tell her that she inspired me to do a dance that she'd done in her Miss Diva days. I'd walked up to her in the cafeteria and told her how I loved her dancing and she was sweet and warm. When she got to know I'm from Karnataka too, we began conversing in Kannada. Later, she mentored me for the international pageant. But, it's the Kannada bond, the moment you find someone, you're glued to each other.
Asha: In Mumbai, especially, it was like finding an oasis in a desert. So, this helped us. Of course the Supranational pageant played the link that got us together.
On handling rejection and finding validation...Asha: I think I'm over that phase now. I'm so used to facing rejections that it seems normal now. Of course, there are days when I feel low, but speaking to friends and family helps perk me up.
Srinidhi: I had auditioned for the Bangalore Times Fashion Week and was rejected to be a pool model in 2016. Obstacles like those help motivate you, and, of course, there are friends who help you too.
Asha: Look at you, you walked as the showstopper the very next year. Life has something better in store always.
Pressures of choosing the first project...Srinidhi: Pageants took priority because of the age limit. But I knew that irrespective of results that I would be doing
films
. Fortunately, I got a call for a film. I later realised the team comprised Prashanth Neel and Yash. I was a big fan of Ugramm and I said I'd do it the moment I read the story. I was thrilled that I was starting off in Kannada films.
Asha: I never set out to be an actor. My parents suggested that I try out films and it was only in 2016 that I began giving auditions. Someone told me, ‘In Mumbai, you don't get to choose your first film, your first film chooses you.’ In 2017, September, around my birthday, I auditioned for Junglee. A month later, I got a call that I am a part of the film. After Junglee, I was called by the team of the Kannada film Roberrt.
If they were to do a film together...Srinidhi: I think it should have a lot of action and gadgets, like Bond girls...
Asha: Or like Charlie's Angels
Srinidhi: Yes, that would be good to do, it would be fun for us too.
Asha: Or maybe a chick flick.
Srinidhi: That would be a fun option too...