Actress Janhvi Kapoor, who is the daughter of legendary Indian actress Sridevi and producer Boney Kapoor, acknowledges her privilege.
Janhvi is playing the first Indian female airforce pilot in combat, Gunjan Saxena, in a biopic on Netflix out Aug 12.
When asked by journalist Barkha Dutt what she learned from Gunjan, who's of a middle-class background and doesn't have the same privileges she has, Janhvi responds:
"It's something that I've considered my entire life. I've been very aware of the privilege I come from. I know that I have, for the lack of a better word, a fast track almost into a lot of opportunities because of my background.
"But it comes down to the effort and the hard work that I put in. I know that because of the privilege I come from, I've kind of skipped a process that most have been subjected to. So even if I work as hard as everybody else, I don't think that that's enough. I think that there must be much more of an effort to make up for that and prove that I'm deserving of an opportunity."
Pressed if she ever felt guilty about her position of privilege, the 23-year-old who starred in the 2018 hit film Dhadak replies: "There were many times where I was made to feel apologetic and there was a phase where I feel I definitely don't deserve it. But what am I going to get out of feeling guilty about this.
"I should use it to my advantage and I should feel blessed. It'll be a waste to not dedicate all of my being to making the best out of it that I can."
She continues: "I don't think people will and should accept me unless I'm extraordinary. I think that standard is extremely high but it will motivate me to work harder."
The issue of nepotism in Bollywood cropped up after actor Sushant Singh Rajput died by suicide on June 14. There are allegations that the 34-year-old was a victim of nepotism.
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