Aaditi S Pohankar believes that some of the most powerful performances come from a place of personal truth — often rooted in lived experiences, pain and hardship. The Lai Bhaari actress encountered this reality in a deeply personal way while filming a death scene for Aashram Season 3 .
In an unexpected turn of events, Aditi lost her father just days after shooting a sequence in which her character performs the last rites for her on-screen father. Reflecting on the moment, she shares, “When I was performing the last rites of my on-screen father for the show, I had no idea I’d be doing the same thing in real life just two days later. It was almost surreal — like life was preparing me for what was to come. That scene, unknowingly, became a form of emotional release for me. It helped me process grief and fear before it actually happened. That kind of catharsis is something artistes often talk about — how pain can be transformed into art.”
The emotional weight of that experience left a lasting impact on her, not just as an actor but as a person. “While I was shooting for the show, my father was slipping away. He told me, ‘You have to go shoot.’ So, I did. We spoke… and then, he was gone. When I came back, everything felt strangely peaceful. Almost like he had waited for me to do what I needed to do. That gave me a kind of peace and that’s something I carry with me always,” she says.
