“Theatre is a live medium that teaches an actor to be present in the moment, and helps in skill enhancement. On stage, one does not have the benefit of camera and editing. Having said that to assume that every theatre actor is a notch above the rest is like saying every engineer out of IIT is better than engineers from other institutions and that would be preposterous,” says the actor who is currently seen in Rajan Shahi’s Yeh Rishta Kya Kehlata Hai

The advent of OTT and the pandemic has heavily impacted theatre. There is a fear among many that the art form is at risk of losing its relevance.

“Pandemic impacted films too so theatre isn’t the only medium that lost out on viewers but as things inch back to normal, so will the theatre revive itself. It’s just a matter of time,” the actor sounds positive.

Pragati has not seen anything in the past two years. The last play she saw was Moulin Rouge in Paris just before the pandemic in 2019. “I have realised I remember musicals more. Mughal-E-Azam by Firoz Abbas Khan is one such play. I also loved Moulin Rouge for its grandeur,” she shares.

Veteran theatre actors like Ashish Vidhyarthi, Shabana Azmi, Anupam Kher are still doing plays, but, according to some, most of the current actors have no interest in doing theatre. Negating the concept, Pragati adds, “That’s an assumption. In the younger lot of actors, there are many who have graduated from theatre to TV or films? Many actors who started with theatre keep going back to their roots in between their shoots. Let’s accept, theatre doesn’t pay like films or TV does. And a professional actor also aspires to make a living out of their craft.”

The post Pragati Mehra says, “Many actors who started with theatre keep going back to their roots in between their shoots”! first appeared on Latest News, Breaking News, National News, World News, India News, Bollywood News, Business News, Politics News, Sports News, Entertainment News - CineBuster.

However, the actress admits that looking a certain way on screen gets stressful at times. But she has found a way to deal with it. “I have never been a thin person all my life. Everyone around me loves to feed the thought that an actor has to be a certain size. So yes, that did make me insecure to an extent and it still does sporadically. But then I see actors 10 years younger than me, as thin as sticks, and still playing the same onscreen age character as me. So, the thought crosses my mind at times but vanishes faster than it appeared,” she says.

As far as work is concerned, Pragati says that some things need to be left to destiny. “An actor can only choose and pick the best (that they think) that comes their way. When I was signed Uttaran, Colors was a new channel. Who knew that the show would become the No.1 show? So, an actor can only do their best in a given scenario and it ends there,” she says.

While working in the industry is tough, Pragati says that there are some problems which are faced in all fields, and not only in showbiz. “Unemployment is the name of the game across the board, across any and every line of work. Why single out entertainment? It’s a disappointing scenario across,” she says.

Ask her if she is satisfied with the way her career has shaped up, and she says, “That’s a mixed bag! I am satisfied that I have two huge hits of Indian TV – Yeh Rishta Kya Kehlata Hai and Uttaran in my body of work, also iconic shows like Chhoti Bahu. But I have kind of been typecast and have been bagging strong or negative characters in the 40 years age bracket, even when I was not 40. Now that I am in the age bracket, some real good scripts go past because people have only seen me play a matriarch. I have never got an opportunity to play a slice of life character.”

The post Pragati Mehra says, “Have seen younger actors, thin as sticks, playing the same roles as me”! first appeared on Latest News, Breaking News, National News, World News, India News, Bollywood News, Business News, Politics News, Sports News, Entertainment News - CineBuster.

The third part of YRKKH trilogy is presently on air. Pragati adds that the show has added to her career. “It’s one of the longest-running shows! That’s a landmark in itself. And everyone aspires to have such shows in one’s work profile. I am blessed to have another chance, to do another show after Uttaran in my repertoire. In all honesty, actors do not get to see shows regularly as we are shooting them! So I haven’t seen all of it, but the audience is loving the show and that’s what matters more than anything else,” she adds.

On the best compliment that she has received so far, the actor shares, “Well it’s a mixed bag. Some feel it was a strong character but then writers forgot to write it in the narrative. Others feel this character is going to unite Abhimanyu (Harshad) and Akshara (Pranali). Some feel this is a modern woman, others feel she is too self-obsessed. So compliments and brickbats will come your way given what the character is doing in the narrative as compared to Abhimanyu and Akshara.”

Audiences are praising the authentic look and feel of the show. “Yes, the show remains true to its title. It is about relations, romance, and family. There is a reason it’s called Yeh Rishta Kya Kehlata Hai,” she ends.

The post ‘YRKKH’ actor Pragati Mehra feels that the loyal audience has invested in its characters and journey emotionally! first appeared on Latest News, Breaking News, National News, World News, India News, Bollywood News, Business News, Politics News, Sports News, Entertainment News - CineBuster.

“Love ain’t an idea. It’s a feeling that grows over time. Love is when you disagree, but still hold hands,” she said. According to her, all love is human love — parental, romantic or platonic.

“Having said that one needs romantic love at all stages of life and the definition of that doesn’t change much though the expression of it does in different stages of life,” she said. But romantic love isn’t the only love. “So let’s not glorify it. It’s one spectrum and it’s necessary, but not having or losing romantic love isn’t something that is be all and end all.”

Asked if she feels the way social media has blurred the lines between real and fake, it’s hard to find love, she said, “Real and fake always existed, but earlier it was tough to discover fakeness. Now it’s easier or let’s say, too many options for everyone hence, too much and constant window shopping by a large section of people. Social media isn’t to blame but our own being and nature! Social media has also thrown open avenues to meet more people unlike before, so no social media ain’t the culprit, it’s humans.”

She feels that if we can manage time for work, nothing should stop us from doing so for love. She doesn’t think love is an illusion. “Thinking of lust to be in love is the real issue. Taking infatuation as love is the issue. Confusing all of this for love is where the problem is,” she explained.

The post According to Pragati Mehra, all love is human love – parental, romantic or platonic! first appeared on Latest News, Breaking News, National News, World News, India News, Bollywood News, Business News, Politics News, Sports News, Entertainment News - CineBuster.

Rajan and his team got a cake for her and the entire unit got together for the celebration. In fact, Pragati treated them all with a special lunch to celebrate her birthday.

Rajan said, “It’s very nice to see the new cast of the show getting together so well. The Goenkas and Birlas are bonding so well. Valuing on and off-screen relationships have always been a priority for me and my team. We celebrated Pragati’s birthday today on the set, and it was a very sweet gesture by her to give a lunch treat to everyone, the unit, the workers, all of them present on the set. I wish her a very happy birthday again.”

“Yeh Rishta Kya Kehlata Hai” is produced under Shahi’s banner Director’s Kut Productions and airs on Star Plus. It features Harshad Chopda, Pranali Rathod, Karishma Sawant, Mayank Arora, Sharan Anandani, Ami Trivedi, Ashish Nayyar, Paras Priyadarshan, Pragati Mehra, Vinay Jain, Neeraj Goswami, Niharika Chouksey, Swati Chitnis, Sachin Tyagi, Ali Hassan and Niyati Joshi.

We wish Pragati a very happy birthday.

The post A ‘sweet gesture’ from YRKKH actor Pragati Mehra on her birthday! first appeared on Latest News, Breaking News, National News, World News, India News, Bollywood News, Business News, Politics News, Sports News, Entertainment News - CineBuster.

She said, “The pandemic and being confined to our homes for the whole of last year has been an eye-opener. I realised how much we have and how little we need. So on my birthday, I am not going to do any useless shopping for clothes or jewellery or cars or properties. I have enough and more as of now. So I’m not gifing any materialistic things to myself on my birthday.”

As for a birthday ritual she follows every year, she revealed, “If it counts as a ritual I travel on my birthday for sure. Just partying hasn’t been my scene or style of celebration for a few years now.”

But since she plays an important role in the popular show, it seems traveling won’t be possible this time. “Signing a new show a month before my birthday has thrown all plans out of the window. Looks like it will be a working birthday,” Pragati concluded.

The post Pragati Mehra is not planning to unnecessarily splurge on buying a birthday gift for herself! first appeared on Latest News, Breaking News, National News, World News, India News, Bollywood News, Business News, Politics News, Sports News, Entertainment News - CineBuster.

Prateik Chaudhary – Traditional looks cool on him and he represents youngistan!

Pragati Mehra- The ladylike elegance wins our heart

Delnaaz Irani- Cool look with beau Percy always rocks

Hasaz Zaidi- He shines always in acting and in looks

Himanshu Malhotra- The perfect couple vibes

Nyrraa M. Banerji- Awesomeness personified

Sham Mashalkar- The perfect family man look

Shiny Doshi- The Diva look with a midas touch

Nishant Malkhani- The most eligible bachelor’s traditional avtar

Sharad Malhotra- Marriages are made in heaven look

Ridhiema Tiwari- The sensational traditional look

Rajit Dev- Simplicity has got a new colour.

The post Check out Tele-Celeb’s diwali look! first appeared on Latest News, Breaking News, National News, World News, India News, Bollywood News, Business News, Politics News, Sports News, Entertainment News - CineBuster.

“Joining an iconic show is always a privilege. The legacy is huge and it’s humbling to be a part of the new set of characters that shall take it forward. I would not like to reveal the complexities and charisma of my character. All I can say is that she is a working professional and a very strong woman,” she says.

Talking about what made her say yes to the role, she adds, “In all Honesty TV storylines and character graphs get altered on a daily basis as per the audiences’ reaction to storytelling and their feedback. I try to abstain from being too attached to the character narrated as then at times it may lead to disappointments like ‘Arre yeh toh nahi sunaya tha’. Having said that, what attracted me most was the fact that it’s a show with 14 years of legacy! Audience surely loves what has been narrated all these years and I would like to keep entertaining them. The story, performance and presentation are the reasons why this show is successful.”

Pragati also feels that it is not essential to relate to a character to play it well. “Why should an actor even relate to a character? One can’t possibly have gone through all the experiences that the character has! An actor should be able to slip into the world of the character and feel whatever they can but not necessarily relate to it. To begin with I have never been married or had children of my own nor have I adopted, so there is never going to be any relatability with my personal experiences, but there is relatability with the world of character is possible. I particularly remember an incident (from another show), where my character was to be slapped by her husband. Now as a person I was unable to relate to it as the act is completely wrong. It took me a while to stop relating to the character and just play it as it is,” she explains.

Having worked with Rajan Shahi earlier for Saath Phere, Bidaai, the actor knows how things work here. “I have known the whole team since 2007! Romesh Karla, Vivek Jain, Arif Shaikh, we go a long way. Though I did not get an opportunity to work with them all these years, we have been in touch. And this time when Rajan ji called from overseas to narrate the character, I was not going to let the opportunity go,” she says adding that along with working with her old team, content is the other thing that got her interested in the role.

“I have said it earlier and said it again. The YRKKH team knows perfectly well what they are narrating and the audience is loving it. Anything narrated with human emotions intact is interesting. The title of YRKKH encompasses all relations! It can be used as an affirmation and also a question. Here it defines family bonds, love, friendships, business partnership, and above all our relationship with our audiences too,” she signs off.

The post Pragati Mehra confesses, ‘Rajan Shahi ji called from overseas to narrate the character, I was not going to let the opportunity go’! first appeared on Latest News, Breaking News, National News, World News, India News, Bollywood News, Business News, Politics News, Sports News, Entertainment News - CineBuster.

“Joining an iconic show is always a privilege. The legacy is huge and it’s humbling to be a part of the new set of characters that shall take it forward. I would not like to reveal the complexities and charisma of my character. All I can say is that she is a working professional and a very strong woman,” she says.

Talking about what made her say yes to the role, she adds, “In all Honesty TV storylines and character graphs get altered on a daily basis as per the audiences’ reaction to storytelling and their feedback. I try to abstain from being too attached to the character narrated as then at times it may lead to disappointments like ‘Arre yeh toh nahi sunaya tha’. Having said that, what attracted me most was the fact that it’s a show with 14 years of legacy! Audience surely loves what has been narrated all these years and I would like to keep entertaining them. The story, performance and presentation are the reasons why this show is successful.”

Pragati also feels that it is not essential to relate to a character to play it well. “Why should an actor even relate to a character? One can’t possibly have gone through all the experiences that the character have! An actor should be able to slip into the world of the character and feel whatever they can but not necessarily relate to it. To begin with I have never been married or had children of my own nor have I adopted, so there is never going to be any relatability with my personal experiences, but there is relatability with the world of character is possible. I particularly remember an incident (from another show), where my character was to be slapped by her husband. Now as a person I was unable to relate to it as the act is completely wrong. It took me a while to stop relating to the character and just play it as it is,” she explains.

Having worked with Rajan Shahi earlier for Saath Phere, Bidaai, the actor knows how things work here. “I have known the whole team since 2007! Romesh Karla, Vivek Jain, Arif Shaikh, we go a long way. Though I did not get an opportunity to work with them all these years, we have been in touch. And this time when Rajan ji called from overseas to narrate the character, I was not going to let the opportunity go,” she says adding that along with working with her old team, content is the other thing that got her interested in the role.

“I have said it earlier and saying it again. The YRKKH team knows perfectly well what they are narrating and the audience is loving it. Anything narrated with human emotions intact is interesting. The title of YRKKH encompasses all relations! It can be used as an affirmation and also a question. Here it defines family bonds, love, friendships, business partnership, and above all our relationship with our audiences too,” she signs off.

The post Pragati Mehra says, ‘The YRKKH team knows perfectly well what they are narrating and the audience is loving it’! first appeared on Latest News, Breaking News, National News, World News, India News, Bollywood News, Business News, Politics News, Sports News, Entertainment News - CineBuster.