Shraddha Kapoor unveils SCREEN’s digital cover
New Delhi| In the biggest event of the year, The Indian Express relaunched its iconic film magazine, SCREEN. SCREEN was reintroduced at a gala event headlined by Shraddha Kapoor. The Stree 2 star unveiled the brand new SCREEN and also became the face of its first-ever digital cover. At the grand event, Shraddha Kapoor was joined by two other celebrated Bollywood figures — filmmaker Rajkumar Hirani and actor Vijay Varma.
The gala event, held at Four Seasons Hotel at Worli, Mumbai, kicked off with the digital cover launch. Shraddha then took part in ‘SCREEN Live,’ engaging in a conversation with Jyoti Sharma Bawa. The launch event was followed by our first-of-its-kind ‘Creator x Creator’ session, which was held in front of a live audience for the first time. The special and much-talked-about segment saw Rajkumar Hirani, known for helming acclaimed blockbusters like Munnabhai MBBS, 3 Idiot and the Shah Rukh Khan-starrer Dunki, engaging in a chat with Vijay Varma, who was recently seen in Netflix’s IC814. The duo talked about their art, philosophy, process and career. This segment was hosted by Shubhra Gupta, film critic and senior columnist with the Indian Express.
This was Shraddha Kapoor’s first public event with a panel discussion since Stree 2 broke all box office records. Similarly, it was also the first time Rajkumar Hirani shared the stage with Vijay Varma.
Over the years, the actor has appeared in several popular films, however, Stree 2 took her already flourishing career to the next level. The horror comedy has emerged as one of the highest-grossing Indian films of all time, and at the SCREEN launch, Shraddha reflected on her success, and whether it’s alienating or liberating.
She said, “I will be very honest. I still live with my parents and my pets… and for me, it’s a blast. My entire journey has been a great time in the film industry. I feel like I have been very blessed. My parents have seen me go through the ups and downs, but I do believe that failure is supremely essential towards success. Failure is a very big teacher. I am blessed to have a fabulous support system. I am grateful for where I am, because several people are waiting to live the celluloid life.”
She added, “My dad has come from a non-filmy family. His stories are so incredible. He came from Delhi. My grandfather had a textile store and he told my dad, ‘You work in Delhi and you do whatever you want’. My dad had joined a travel agency, but he wanted to act. He hopped on to a train and came to Bombay. Those stories make me want to keep my head down, because my dad really made it from scratch and made it on his own.”
Shraddha also spoke about how the industry has changed in the years since her debut in the film Teen Patti (2010). She said, “I am earning more today than I was 14 years ago. But, there is a pay parity, which I also feel like it is changing.”
Answering a question about how remuneration for major stars has evolved in recent years, she said that these decisions are made by producers. She said, “Whatever is going to work positively in the making of a film, the way it is supposed to be made, those calls the producers will have to take. It’s their vision. I feel like there are a few who have long-term vision and really know where the industry is headed. There is no uniform way which everybody is following.”
