Shanaya Kapoor has opened up about her preparation process for her role you and meRevealing how he understood and changed his character before the release of the film. Directed by Bejoy Nambiar, the romantic thriller stars Adarsh Gourav opposite Kapoor and is set to release in theaters on Valentine’s Day.
Exclusive: Shanaya Kapoor reveals Black Panther-inspired preparation for Tu Ya Main: “I didn’t want to play it stereotypically”
Told about his role in an exclusive interview with IHNSShanaya shared that the first defining aspect she knew about her character was her profession. “The first thing I knew about my character was that he is a content creator,” he said. He further added that it became important for him to find authenticity in how this profession is portrayed on screen. “I wanted to find a lot of truth in him and truth in his profession because that’s a very important aspect of the film.”
The actress explained that she deliberately stayed away from familiar portrayals associated with social media influencers. Shanaya said, “I didn’t want to play it in this stereotypical way that people do. There’s this perception about content creators – if you make a reel, you’re talking a certain way or you’re in that girly zone. She’s not like that. She’s a complete badass.”
Kapoor also talked about an acting technique that helped him connect more deeply with the character. He revealed that during a workshop conducted by Adarsh Gaurav and Atul Mongia, he was introduced to the concept of animal studies – something he had never explored before. “One of the techniques that Adarsh introduced me to during Atul sir’s workshop was animal studies,” he said.
As part of the exercise, Shanaya chose the black panther as the animal closest to her character’s personality. Describing her choice, she said, “Black Panther is the animal I chose because she has those eyes, she has strength, she has this very sensual, sexy side to her and how confident she is in the way she moves.”
To imbibe these qualities, Shanaya immersed herself in observing the animal up close. He shared, “Watching videos of this animal really helped me. We even actually performed as the animal one day.” Taking the practice a step further, she revealed that she kept the image of a black panther’s eyes as her phone wallpaper during shooting to stay connected to the emotional core of the character.
Tu Ya Main is Shanaya Kapoor’s second theatrical release and marks the first time she is pairing up with National Award-winning actor Adarsh Gaurav. Directed by Bejoy Nambiar, the film is expected to be a mix of psychological and emotional tension with romance when it releases this Valentine’s Day.
