Aneet Padda recalls how Ahaan Panday had prayed for her casting for Saiyaara

Ahaan Panday and Aneet Padda made ground-breaking acting debuts in Mohit Suri`s superhit movie Saiyaara. The YRF-backed rom-com not only achieved enormous commercial success, but also won the hearts of the public. The film is presently the highest-grossing picture directed by debutants. In a recent interview, the overnight stars discussed their record-breaking film, their friendship with each other, and future ambitions.

Ahaan claimed in an interview with The Hollywood Reporter India that, despite the fact that he has been waiting for his acting debut for numerous years, he has no "resentment" toward anyone."Have I felt wronged by people? Yes, I have. It wouldn’t be right for me to get personal about that, though, but as an actor that’s where you take [inspiration] from. I would take a small moment and enlarge that for the character. I just kept putting myself into different things. There was that blind optimism, the first four-five years, where I was entirely delusional, and I think people around me could sense it," he said.

Ahaan gets candid about his struggles

Ahaan recalled his difficult phase when his dear one had passed away, "I would have to tell myself to [keep the faith] because things weren’t going the way I wanted them to. Something happened in my personal life that left me shattered. A person very important to me [passed away], and she was my backbone; the only person that would call me a hero every day in my home and always meant it. And I think once she [passed away] that confidence started to shatter; the only way to deal with that was to just keep working, and that’s what I did."

He further quipped, "Eventually, I got this opportunity. I would always remind myself: to assist on a set is a dream for millions. To be able to pursue art is a luxury; most people didn’t get to do that, I did. That kept me going. I got to be on a film set, I got to learn from other actors. I didn’t ever think it would be this [big]. I was happy doing this; I was never sour or bitter that things weren’t going my way, because I got to be on a set."

Ahaan revealed how he was so sure about his career path, "I think it goes back to my grandmother; that was the person close to me whom I lost. Yash Raj Films was a dream for me, it was the cinema I grew up with, the cinema my grandmother dreamed I would be a part of. She used to call me ‘Raj’ all the time. My sister’s Hindu name is Chandni, based on the film Chandni, and my Hindu name is Yash; we’re big filmy Yash Raj lovers."

He shared, "So, when Adi sir asked me, it was instinctive because I believed it was my destiny. It was just this childhood dream of mine; I’ve seen these heroes my whole life, emulated them, looked up to them and that was [what I wanted to be] the first chapter of my professional life. I know [when I’m older] I’ll look back on this and be very happy, and I know my grandmother would be very happy. It was her dream for me to be an actor; I wanted to be a writer. Somewhere, I did this for her."

Aneet recalls the hearfelt moment

Aneet Padda, on the other hand, recalled a particular occasion between herself and Ahaan before signing the film. "When I was auditioning for Saiyaara, Ahaan had taken me to Mount Mary Church and we’d lit a candle and sat in the car. I asked him, ‘What did you wish for?’ He looked at me and asked, ‘What did you wish for?’ A week later, I got the call that I’d gotten the role, and he said, ‘Of course, I’d wished that you’d get the role", she revealed.