Dabba Cartel actor Shalini Pandey on working with Shabana Azmi: 'I have understood life better as an artiste'

Dabba Cartel actor Shalini Pandey on learning from Shabana Azmi and navigating her career with purpose

The experience of filming her latest release, Dabba Cartel, has left an indelible mark on actor Shalini Pandey. Reason: Getting to know the person behind the icon that is her co-star Shabana Azmi. “I have understood life better as an artiste and a person through her. We have all seen her brilliance as an artiste, but I had the fortune of knowing her as a human being, closely. The way she carries herself with so much grace, generosity and strength is something I have taken home with me. As I grow in life, I want to treat young women the way she treated me, lifted, inspired and nurtured me,” says the actor.

Besides working with talented co-stars, the actor feels blessed for the opportunities in her seven-year career. Pandey began her journey with the 2017 Telugu film, Arjun Reddy, followed by her debut in Hindi with Bamfaad (2020), Jayeshbhai Jordaar (2022) and Maharaj (2024). But popularity is often followed by typecasting, and having featured in consecutive rooted stories, Pandey has faced it too. “I did get similar offers and I have said no to them. Sometimes, it also happens that a part feels similar to what you have done, but you sit with the director and figure out how it can be made different.”

Even down south, Pandey says she has tried to be intentional with her choices, rejecting films that don’t offer her more than just song-and-dance. Moving ahead, 
the actor is excited about her next Tamil feature, Idly Kadai, co-starring and directed by Dhanush.

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