Social Nation Campus reached Sri Ram College of Commerce (SRCC), Delhi on the 13th and 14th of April for the SRCC Business Conclave which was an annual business event with an unparalleled capability of attracting a pan-India audience in a bid to promote the big Indian dream. Since its inception, it has always been graced with a powerful speaker lineup that includes the likes of Sh. Narendra Modi, Late Sh.Pranab Mukherjee, Late Sh.Arun Jaitley, Mukesh Ambani, Kapil Sharma, and Maestros from every field.
Their goal through this event is to break down meaningful sessions and events to help the student community become better suited to address the issues of tomorrow and transform them into the NextGen leaders the country needs.
In an offline event that made the students delighted and had different events happening, the conclave this year had faces that made the students happy to interact with content creators and actors like Ayush Mehra, Barkha Singh, Harshita Singh, and Shruti Sinha.
Ayush Mehra and Barkha Singh
Reflective of his millennial ethos, Ayush Mehra is a multimedia personality. The Call My Agent: Bollywood actor also has a strong presence on social media with over a million followers on Instagram. But Ayush says that his biggest achievement “is my friends and my family.”
He made his debut in the film Isi Life Mein…! (2010) and his television debut in Love By Chance (2014). Mehra went on to establish himself with successful web shows including Minus One, Please Find Attached, Operation MBBS, and the television show Life Lafde Aur Bandiya.
Barkha Singh is an actor with range and great screen presence, Barkha is so much more to her adoring fans – an animal lover, travel enthusiast, and someone who exudes a vibrance and positivity from her Instagram every day. She began her career as a child artist and worked in films such as Mujhse Dosti Karoge! (2002) and Samay: When Time Strikes (2003). She then worked in television shows including Bhagyalaxmi (2015) and Girls on Top (2016).
Singh has been associated with brands such as Amazon, Cadbury, Coca-Cola, and Clinic Plus. She has appeared in multiple television commercials and is an animal activist. Apart from acting, she has hosted online game shows.
In their panel ‘Decoding the Entertainment Industry: Their experience, future & advice’, they spoke and interacted with the students giving advice and more.
When you started back, what was feeling, what was the goal, have you achieved them & new goal?
Ayush: I didn’t dream of being an actor, but I started with dancing just to get some cool gifts from my sister, and over time I started developing an interest in acting, so to test the waters I started assisting in films. From Theatre to Acts to Filtercopy stuff, the popularity of it ended up in various shows. As my ultimate dream was to get into films, It took me 10 Years of hard work to get into my first film, so my goal has just started.
Ayush advised, “If you want to be an actor, you should assist in films, then you know the system & you can try out multiple options in the industry itself.”
When we enter into a profession we have some visuals about the profession?
Barkha: My expectations were like after I do one show I will get work easily but that’s the dream that got broken. You have to be ready for every single project, you have to struggle for every single project as there are so many people for the role.
A: Don’t take rejection personally, you will be rejected right, center & left as sometimes you are not fit for the role but I would still advise you to be humble and kind, The shattering part for me was assuming get a movie in the first year only. Another great learning I got was it’s a business so you have to be a part of the network, but you have to work hard and you get there.
You guys have a huge following on social media, how do you cope up with offline and online?
Barkha: It’s all about time management, but the real reason we do both is that we like it, and if you genuinely love making fun reels and other things you would be more than happy to do that and you juggle your timings to on the job.
Ayush: Barkha is being very modest, she is one of the smartest social media people, I usually look into Barkha’s feed to find what’s trending. I started content creation in lockdown with a series called as ” Knock, Knock”. Who says you can’t be both, look at her she is sitting beside me and she is a content creator & Actor.
How do you manage creativity with work? And how do you manage conflicts during work?
Ayush: The business aspect of it is taken care of by clout, our managers take care of our business, and they take the brunt of it covering us in every aspect. In terms of Creativity, it tweaks on its own. I truly believe in marrying the director’s head and prep up before the shoot and doing a party at that time.
Barkha: Creative difference’s are going to happen, but if you are polite you can give some opinion about your work. Even on set there is always room for mutual collaboration.
The audience also asked them questions which they answered honestly and happily-
Was your family supportive or how did you convince them?
Our family was supportive of us being actors and we were very privileged to be from Bombay and our families supported us in our struggling days.
What are the complexities of this career?
Ayush: You can’t look like someone, you have to be original. You will be seeing more beautiful, more hardworking people in this journey, so instead of focusing on others just focus on growing yourself personal complex is going to happen you have to face it and move on to juggle for professional life, you can’t mix them both.
After a great session with Ayush and Barkha on day one, the second day of the event saw the other two actresses who we’d seen on screen and then it was time to see them off-screen while they shared their advice!
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Shruti Sinha and Harshita Gaur
Shruti Sinha, who rose to fame as a participant on MTV’s reality shows, Roadies, Splitsvilla, and Ace Of Space was there for a panel. Her talent, charm, and infectious energy quickly made her a fan favorite and earned her a large following.
Shruti has taken her passion for performance to new heights. As an actor, she has worked in various TV commercials and music videos, showcasing her versatility and ability to bring characters to life.
With a deep love for various dance styles, she has trained extensively in Bollywood, hip-hop, and contemporary dance forms. Her dedication and hard work have paid off, as she has won several dance competitions and is now recognized as one of the top dancers in the industry.
Known as everyone’s favorite Dimpy Pandit, Harshita Gaur has completed her studies in engineering at Amity University, Noida, while she was still pursuing her engineering studies, she got an offer from Sadda Haq, which marked her television debut. From Sadda Haq to Mirzapur she has managed her charm in OTT and has been everyone’s favorite delight. Recently she was lauded for her performance in another hit series of Sony LIV Jehnabad of Love and War. Gaur is also a trained Kathak dancer and has performed in stage shows across India.
She has also been seen in many commercials, including Dabur Vatika hair oil, Garnier light cream, and Sunsilk. Her latest commercial ad is for Renault Kwid. In 2018, she was hired for the role of ‘Dimpy Pandit’ in the Amazon Prime web series Mirzapur and was highly praised for her performance.
Tridha Choudhary was there too on the panel “The Power of Representation: How women in television are changing the industry” with the ladies where they talked wholeheartedly about work and more.
Whom do you think are the role models who have revolutionized Industry Life?
Harshita: Priyanka Chopra has been an inspiration for me and I look after her even on my bad days, another famous personality would be shefali shah who has been being a role model
Tridha: It’s always Madhuri Dixit, she has left a legacy in the Bollywood industry.
Shruti: Priyanka Chopra, every time she is out there and talking she has been an inspiration.
As a TV Personality, how do you see women on TV, and which things do you want to improve?
Shruti: I have not faced any discrimination the task was made for participants but something I want to change would be we should not go with the old norm, women are now strong and independent and it should come out the same way in fiction.
How do you think the rise of OTT has led to a change?
Harshita: With the rise of OTT, the portrayal of women has changed as their space is for everyone, you are not just to fill the friend’s purpose, only when you are required for the role you are there. The variety of roles that have been given in OTT and has inspired so many to enter the field.
How crucial is it for female actors to play complex roles?
Tridha: We are women we always do complex things, even her weakness in her strength, Even in films we get to see a lot of characters who portray strong women characters, Acceptance was lacking in society but now the whole thing has changed we have got a smarter audience now.
Do you believe that Bollywood has somehow contributed positively towards feminism?
Harshita: Though we are still far away, but actresses are now talking about it openly and offscreen equality is growing but there has to be an improvement onscreen.
How important are the stories made by women for women?
Tridha: Some characters have to come up open to make people understand what they have gone through
A message to the audience waiting to pursue acting?
Shruti: Just Go For it, every part would teach you, you will have obstacles but it will make you what you are.
Tridha: You are not only a student or teacher, you have other hobbies grow in it, just make sure you do it for happiness, and try pursuing new things
Harshita: There are good people out there and my advice would be just gone for it you will face problems and you will learn from them.
After successful and fun sessions at the college, the event was wrapped in good spirits.
