Janhvi Kapoor opened up about her upcoming film, Homebound and said that she never thought of it as a career milestone. The actor said that while shooting the film, there was a collective feeling of being part of something bigger than them. She also shared her experience of seeing the film getting screened at the Cannes Film Festival earlier this year.
In an interview with Sucharita Tyagi on YouTube, Janhvi said, “I never really gave a thought to it as legitimacy or a career milestone while doing Homebound because I don’t know if any of us made it about ourselves. When we were shooting the film, there was a collective sense that we were trying to make something bigger than us. I know it sounds phony but I truly mean it.”
She added, “When it played at Cannes and the way people reacted to it, we never felt like: ‘People liked our work or film.’ It was more like we moved people and made them feel something deeply personal, or perhaps inspired them to be more empathetic individuals in a world so caught up in finding reasons to divide. I never got this feeling of: ‘Abhi kaun troll karega mujhe? (Who will troll me now?’) It was not like that at all.”
Directed by Neeraj Ghaywan, the film also stars Ishaan Khatter and Vishal Jethwa in pivotal roles. Speaking about Ishaan, Janvhi said, “Ishaan is one of the most talented actors we have in our country, and for whatever reasons I don’t think he has been given as much credit as he deserves within Indian cinema. To see him on a stage like this and being appreciated by the world, I felt like good people eventually get their due—the recognition.”
The actor also called Neeraj a ‘honest filmmaker’. “He practices what he preaches. He’s a great man who needs to be rewarded. The real thrill was to see so many immensely talented, deserving people get this world stage,” she added.
Homebound received a nine-minute standing ovation when it premiered at Cannes earlier in May. The film is backed by Karan Johar’s Dharma Productions and tells the story of two childhood friends and migrant workers caught in the panic of Covid-19 lockdown. It is based on a New York Times article written by Basharat Peer.