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Sana Saeed Shares Her Life in the Spotlight
Indian Actress Sana Saeed is well-known as the child star we all loved in Kuch Kuch Hota Hai. The Little Anjali we all loved has blossomed into a beautiful young star! Sana is known for appearing in many films, from Kuch Kuch Hota Hai , Student of The Year, Har Dil Jo Pyaar Hai and many more! Similarly, Sana has always had a love for acting. As a result, she turned her hobby into her life long passion! Sana shared her journey in the spotlight with us.
Indian Actress, Model and all round gifted! How would you describe yourself as an artist?
As an artist, I thrive on learning. Most of the projects that I take, has a lot to do with learning something new and different. I get to learn new things and that is such a perk of being an artist. Getting to play different roles, I get to learn new skills every time I take up a new job.
I find the whole craft very challenging, I love learning from it! As an artist I step into new projects and try and explore them. In general, you get to learn about life through these explorations.
What interested you in entertainment and how did you first become part of the industry? What motivated you to start the journey?
I started as a child star, at the age of 3. Being a friendly kid, someone from my school picked me up for my first ad. My mother was really supportive with the idea. I got picked up, did the ad. I auditioned for a couple of more and worked on and off. My mom saw that I enjoyed it and that I was good at it. She realized that I was having a lot of fun doing it. I would always explore the industry especially on weekends. It was never a job to me.
There was no pressure, I was younger and just having fun, I guess, my mother saw something special in me at that age and knew it would be something amazing even though to me, I was just having fun. She kept letting me go for auditions and have my way to get the work and be a part of the industry. Similarly, she saw it as a hobby and saw that I was certainly good at it , so why not?
In 2018, we celebrated 20 years of Kuch Kuch Hota Hai. What has the experience been like? How did it feel to be a part of such a household Bollywood film that will always be a golden treasure?
To be honest, when I did the movie, it was huge Even looking back 10 years ago, it was huge! Ever since I restarted my career in acting, I started understanding the opportunity that I was given with regards to that movie. I realized how big that opportunity actually was. The respect gained from people from working on that movie and people immediately just think “Oh, you’re talented!”.
When I was younger and you would ask me what I wanted to do, I would say I wanted to become a Veterinarian, diver or an astronaut! Acting was a fun hobby, It never occurred to me at that age that it was such a huge opportunity until restarting my career. Much later, I decided to go back into acting because It was something I really enjoyed and I was good at it! I decided to give it a shot and when auditioning, people would get so excited when I mention the movie! There would be so much of respect for me in the room!
Since then, I realized what a beautiful opportunity I was given at the age of 8. At that age, I was so embarrassed of it growing up, especially when people would call me “Anjali” but now when people do it, I am like “THAT’S ME!.” My whole perspective changed.
The party brought back all the memories from being a young actor. The team was the same and It felt like we were back again with the same crew. I felt like everyone else looked the same and I just became older! It felt like yesterday that we all worked together and luckily we kept in contact many times on various sets that I worked on. It was such a Deja Vu moment!
You have starred in Dil Jo Pyar Karenga and Badal. What was your experience like in the film industry as a young female actress? What challenges have you experienced in the industry?
As a child star, I hardly experienced any challenges in the industry. I guess everyone has their own experiences when working with different people. Being a child star I was continuously protected by my mother. She would always be with me! Hence, I would not really experience any challenges as it was just fun for me. There was no pressure and the team I worked with was always so welcoming and helpful.
Let’s get to know more about you underneath the arts, who is your role model and why?
My mother is my role model. She has always believed in me and has an amazing outlook on life. She always told me that I was enough. Growing up, she would always push us to take on opportunities and let us pursue what we love! It is definitely something I admire about my mother.
She never made us feel less than. We were always enough and she always believed in us! I think that is why I never compared my experience to anyone else’s and I always knew that If I wanted to do something, I can do it. Thanks to her belief in me!
What are three things you cannot live without?
I cannot live without my family, my friends and my cats! I love my cats! Sometimes, my mother thinks I might love them more than her. I am just naturally an animal lover!
Being a child star, what was your best and worst memory of being in the industry at such a young age?
I never had a bad memory being in the industry. I was too young to experience anything bad because my mother always stuck by me. My best experience was working on Kuch Kuch Hota Hai. It felt like being on a summer camp! I was basically on a summer camp with 200 other kids! How awesome is that? The team felt like family and everyone treated me so well. We were all pampered and looked after. It was such a fun time!
I loved working with everyone, especially Shahrukh and Farida Jalal. Shahrukh was like a father figure to me and Farida treated me like her own grandchild. I remember showing them my certificates at school and them being so proud of my achievements. We were all like a family! It was certainly one of my favourite memories!
What do you enjoy the most about your craft and what do you love most about yourself that benefits your craft?
I love my ability to learn new things and adapt to new projects. My willingness to learn benefits my craft because I learn new skills and get to use them differently every single time! I get to learn about life in general through new projects and it helps me become better at my craft because I am continuously growing as an actor. Like my experience on dancing with the stars, I learned how to dance and made top 6! Comedy club as well, I have never done comedy before but I learned and made the most of it!
I went from film, to fear factor to comedy. They are all different genres that I got to work on. My growth comes from my will to learn. My will to also accept what I am capable of doing and being able to take criticism as well. I use it in life every day. You learn to take failure and sometimes not be good at something.
You learn to outdo yourself from what you expected. They come with a lot of real life experiences that we learn from. It basically helps you to do life better. Learning is such a perk of being an artist, I get to evolve from my craft by making use of it.
Do you have any upcoming projects that our readers should know about?
I have two current projects. I wrapped up with Comedy club in 2018. Currently, I am working on an Amazon Prime Show! We are wrapping up on it. I won’t disclose too much. It is a surprise and will be announced later in this year!
What advice do you have for other inspiring young girls wanting to make a name for themselves in the entertainment industry?
Anybody that wants to make it anywhere in life in general, just needs to be persuasive in who they want to be and what they want to do. Go out and do it. Don’t give up! The only time you are going to fail at something is if you give up. I believe that. If you don’t give up, eventually you find your way to get the things that you want.
I feel that what is important to remember is not to do something just because you think it will be good for you. You have to have a passion for it and be persuasive about it. It has to be something you love wholeheartedly. Otherwise if you fail, it is just a misinterpretation of what you wanted to be and who you wanted to be.
Sana Saeed, Indian actress, model and a wise women with wise words! We can learn a lot from this amazing young entertainer. She is a lover of Jake Gyllenhaal and Meryl Streep films. Living by the Rumi quote “what you seek is seeking you”. Sana is a firm believer in that everything that you want, wants you. What is meant for you, will find you if you work for it! We love a woman that knows her worth and her purpose. Sana Saeed is surely a name worth remembering!
