'Aware of hardships faced by producers when actors uncooperative'

NEW DELHI: Bollywood actress Janhvi Kapoor on Monday said she has always been aware of difficulties faced by a producer, especially when artistes are not cooperative.

Jahnvi, daughter of the late film star Sridevi and producer Boney Kapoor, said right at the beginning of her career she pledged she will not cause problems for her producers.

''My whole life, I have always been aware of the hardship that a producer can face when actors are not cooperative. It takes a tremendous amount of money and effort to put up just a day of shooting.

''I know how much trouble my father faced every time an actor has made his life a little difficult. So, I promised myself when I started my career that I wouldn't be such an actor. As a result, I think I'm over diplomatic and polite on other film sets,'' Janhvi told reporters here.

The 25-year-old actor was speaking at a press conference here to promote her upcoming movie ''Mili'', which is produced by her father.

The film might be a home production for Janhvi but the actor said her approach towards the movie was no different than her other projects.

''The only difference on 'Mili' was that I didn't face the fear of the producer finding me arrogant. I didn't have to think that because here my father is the producer.

''He knows me better than anyone. I could tell him exactly what I thought, which was a good feeling,'' she added.

Asked about her relationship with her father, Janhvi said he is her ''best friend''.

''Since the past few years, I have started to feel that my father has become my best friend. We share so much. After I started working with him, I feel we are a team. He has my back and I have his. We can achieve anything together,'' the actor said.

Based on true events, ''Mili'' is the Hindi remake of the (year) Malayalam movie ''Helen''. The survival drama follows Mili Naudiyal, played by Jahnvi, a nursing graduate who races against time to stay alive after she is stuck in a freezer.

Remakes of films from the south industry have always been attempted in Bollywood, but of late, such movies have struggled to make a mark at the box office.

Movies such as Shahid Kapoor-starrer ''Jersey and ''Vikram Vedha'', headlined by Saif Ali Khan and Hrithik Roshan, clocked dismal numbers at the ticket window.

According to Janhvi, the intent behind a movie's adaptation plays an important role. ''I have worked in remakes earlier as well. I believe when the intention behind a film is a honest, the movie turns out good and the audiences also appreciate it.

''If the filmmaker's agenda to remake a film is to take the story to more audiences, it is good. Such a movie will also work well. But if the aim is to capitalise on a movie's success in the domestic market and earn money by adapting it in Hindi, it is not the right intention,'' said the actor, who earlier this year starred in ''Good Luck Jerry'', the Hindi remake of 2018 Tamil film ''Kolamaavu Kokila''.

With ''Mili'', the aim was to take the story of ''Helen'' to a larger audience.

The upcoming movie is directed by Mathukutty Xavier, the filmmaker behind the original, Janhvi pointed out.

''With our film, the director is the same person who directed the original and he wanted to tell the story to the larger audience. He made the original movie on a small budget. We took the decision to remake it because of the story, which is quite lovely.

''It is a remake but still it is a new story. A lot of people in the north haven't watched the original. We wanted to present this story in our unique way to the Hindi-speaking audience,'' she added.

Also featuring Manoj Pahwa and Sunny Kaushal, ''Mili'' is produced by Zee Studios and Boney Kapoor. The movie will be released in theatres countrywide on Friday.

Janhvi also opened up about her film's box office clash with ''Phone Bhoot'', starring Katrina Kaif, Ishaan and Siddhant Chaturvedi, and Sonakshi Sinha-Huma Qureshi's ''Double XL''.

''It is exciting because after a long time audiences will have to choose among three films. For a long time, there were no movies being released in theatres. All the three films are different from each other.

''Obviously, I hope the audiences like my film the most. But objectively speaking, all the movies look exciting. wish them all the best,'' she said.