'Saiyaara's Aneet Padda recalls what made her want to act
26 Nov 2025

Aneet Padda, the breakout star of Saiyaara, recently revealed her journey into acting.

In a new Grazia interview, she spoke about the moment she first realized her passion for acting and how her mother's simple advice changed everything.

Padda, who made her acting debut with Salaam Venky (2022), revealed that her first taste of performance came from a school poetry competition.

'I was this oblivious child, always daydreaming...'
Early inspiration

Padda recalled, "As a kid, I was this oblivious child, always daydreaming."

"I would memorize the poem and deliver it very blandly, and my mom kept saying, 'You just have to understand what it means. Stop overthinking and say it the way you feel it.'"

Padda followed her mom's advice and ended up winning the first prize. She added, "I remember thinking, wow, that feels kind of nice. I wouldn't mind another one."

Padda's school performances and teachers' encouragement
Career development

Padda continued to perform in school plays, often cast in minor roles. However, her teachers and principal recognized her potential before she did.

"They noticed the emotion I brought to poetry could naturally translate to a performance," Padda said.

One day, her school principal told her, "You're very good at this. I don't think you know."

This was when she first considered acting as a skill rather than just an extracurricular activity.

Padda's relationship with her fans and future projects
Fan connection

Now, with a growing fan base, Padda feels a strong bond with her supporters.

"I'm very sensitive. I feel things deeply. So, the responsibility of love, that weight of wanting to do right by the people who support you, that can feel pressurizing."

After Saiyaara's huge success, she remains tight-lipped about her future projects but confirmed her next film Shakti Shalini will be part of Maddock Films's horror-comedy universe and is scheduled for a December 2026 release.