Manushi Chhillar made her stage debut at the ongoing International Film Festival of India (IFFI) in Goa through a live performance, and she made sure her parents were there to witness that in the audience.
She doesn’t agree with people talking about the film festival for inclining more towards glamour and says it has been an integral part of showbiz for decades.
On people saying that the fest is turning more about fashion and glamour
This edition of IFFI was high on Bollywood, with stars including Kriti Sanon, Ranbir Kapoor, and Sanya Malhotra becoming part of it. That made people wonder if the film festival is turning more about fashion and glamour.
“IFFI is a film festival and it is about films. Glamour and films to a certain extent do go hand in hand,” Manushi tells us when asked about the same.
The actor continues, “That’s because glamour creates aspirational value. IFFI is a very aspirational platform and glamour is adding value to it.”
What needs to be pointed out, according to Manushi, is that the core of IFFI still remains to be about films and filmmaking.
“It is important to have glamour because it brings eyeballs to such events. Over the decades, we have seen that filmmaking and glamour go hand in hand. That being said, these events can’t be just about glamour, and who wore what and when…They are about films. But we need to understand that films come with aspirational value, and glamour adds to it. And it does bring eyeballs to such events. So, it will always be an integral part not just at IFFI but every film festival all over the world,” adds Manushi.
On her performance at IFFI
The former beauty queen took the stage at IFFI in Goa to perform on songs from Hindi, Bengali, South, and Punjabi film industries. While she had attended the festival two years back, she performed on stage at the festival for the first time.
“This was my first live performance on stage as an actor… It was so nice to celebrate how India makes so many films in different languages catering to a vast audience. I have loved being on the stage since childhood. This time, my parents were in the audience, and it just took me back to my school days when I would perform and my parents came to watch me,” adds the actor, who was last seen in Bade Miyan Chote Miyan.
While she had jitters before going on the stage, the actor also lauds the audience for being “reactive and responsive” and making it a success.
On her parents being her biggest cheerleaders
The actor, who entered Bollywood with Samrat Prithviraj in 2022, shares that having her parents live through the new experience of her life was very important.
“Both my parents are doctors, and all this is so new for them. They are always so happy and excited for me. They are experiencing the industry and life of an actor through me. So, every time, I am shooting a song or doing something new in my career, I try my level best to make them witness it, considering they also have a hectic work life. My journey has been about a lot of support from my parents. So, I want them to be part of every big and small thing of my career,” she says.
“Acting is not something that I had prepared for since childhood. I have enjoyed partaking in school plays, and dancing on stage, and I am a trained classical dancer, but I always looked at it as a hobby and not as a profession. Now, this is the profession, I do want to meet people from the industry and be at more places such as IFFI where I could learn and pick whatever I can,” she concludes.