- Smriti Mishra's Diary -

...as you will see in Dil Dosti Etc, Vaishali’s relationship with Apurv has several layers, and in a fuzzy way, contains all elements of a man-woman relationship. To me that’s what the film is all about.

When Manish Tiwary gave the script to me to read, I remember liking the role of this sex worker Vaishali from the very start. It grew on you, and you wanted to know what becomes of her. I liked her no-nonsense attitude - she is very clear about her ‘just-sex, no-relationship’ rule with her customers. But as the story develops we see that somewhere she has a craving for love like any normal human being, and falls for a young college going boy, Apurv (played by Imaad Shah). However, the thought of getting to use strong language and to play a sex worker was not an easy decision. We worked on it, and slowly it became easy for me to go for it.

... in the beginning, I was at a loss to get the right chord. We did a preparation workshop with Anamika Haksar which helped Imaad and I to open up to each other. I took this role very seriously, and, in fact, also thought of meeting a prostitute but opted out. I decided to trust Manish and my own imagination to carry out the task.

What worked was that Imaad let himself go!, in order to be comfortable with me and let me be comfortable with him – this was the most important element for me to carry out the role of Vaishali. You will see a great actor in this very young and great looking guy. I will go as far as saying that Imaad Shah is the best male co-actor I have worked with so far.

...shooting in Delhi carries strong memories for me! Thanks to the film team, the location where we shot felt like an actual kotha, with madam, sex workers and clients all around you! They got me living as Vaishali in it. The only thing I miss is not having many light moments on the sets. Partly because, I was playing a prostitute and I could not feel very easy on the sets. I remember, I also fought with Manish, but then, when you are on the road, these things happen!

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- Nikita Anand’s Diary -

By the time I came aboard, most of the cast of Dil Dosti Etc was decided, except for the Prerna’s character. I liked Prerna’s character when Manish narrated it to me. She is a Delhi University student and an aspiring model who has grown up without her mother and therefore looks up to her dad. Manish was of the view that I fit the character well and I thought that this was certainly an interesting role. I think I was chosen to play Prerna also because of my background – I was a Miss India and had the experience in modeling. These experience were actually very helpful in getting into Prerna’s role. I understood Prerna as a very independent girl who likes her freedom and knows exactly what she wants. And I think we have done a pretty good job of handling her!

The Shoot in Delhi? It was tough and hectic! And gosh! how HOT it was! That’s because, we were shooting during the peak Delhi summers. But then, I love Delhi and it was fun shooting on locations.

My Co-actors: Working with Shreyas was great. Along with having fun on the set, Shreyas is a wonderful actor and there is a lot I learnt from him. He’s very helpful and doesn’t hesitate in helping out during the scenes. Imaad on the other hand is opposite in nature. He’s more reserved and comes with a different style of acting (you’ll see!). Working with both of them was an enriching experience.

The start to acting in films is from participating and winning local pageants like Miss Ranchi, May Queen, Navy Queen, and the Face Hunt Model contest by India Times, and modeling after finishing my schooling. As the next step I tried for the Miss India contest and I won it! Post winning the title -I did launches, ramp shows, print shoots, and extensive anchoring, both live and for television. And, now, it’s FILMS!

There’s so much to learn and discover and each day has widened my horizon. It’s been a great journey; there have always been new things to look forward to and to come and meet new challenges!