'Things have become tougher for outsiders'

Mumbai: Actors Sayani Gupta and Avinash Tiwary believe the criticism the film industry has received in the last few months has made it more difficult for aspiring artistes to convince their families to let them pursue a career in movies.

At a panel discussion, Gupta and Tiwary opened up about how they navigated parental disapproval to become actors, which could be tougher for newcomers today due to the current perception about showbiz world.

Tiwary, who garnered acclaim with the 2018 'Laila Majnu', said people have always looked at Bollywood with a suspicious lens.

"I come from Bihar, from a conventional family. Even now, the perception of the Hindi film industry isn't great. It was not that people didn't know that these things happen, everyone thought this is what Bollywood is. I wouldn't deny that somewhere I also was aware of the fact that it's probably not the ideal space for someone who comes from Bihar, whose parents want to see him as an IAS officer...," he said.

The actor said with time, his family started supporting his aspirations but the recent negative wave in the industry has only reinforced a manufactured, manipulated image of the industry.

Gupta, most recently seen on the Amazon Prime Video series 'Four More Shots', said what has happened in the last few months was "unfortunate."

The actor said the current generation had to fight back and work "unbelievably" hard to prove to their parents that one can have a dignified life and a "proper career" even as an artiste.

"But the last few months have made it even more difficult for kids to come from a middle class background, work in Mumbai and have a respectable space for themselves in terms of the family things."