Rely on your craft, not connections

Initially harbouring ‘khayali pulao’ dream of being launched in Bollywood, Mirzapur 3 actor Isha Talwar on how she worked her way up despite having a producer-father

Mirzapur is more than a hit series for Isha Talwar. The crime drama came to the actor, who has worked in Malayalam, Telugu and Tamil films since 2012, when she wanted to plant her feet more firmly in the Hindi entertainment industry. “When you start working in languages you don’t speak, you are doubtful whether you know acting or not, whether you understand the craft. I felt I needed to work more in Hindi,” she says of her early years in 
the industry. 

Vinod Talwar

In 2020, Talwar bagged the role of Madhuri Tripathi Yadav in Mirzapur’s second season. Now, with the third edition having dropped online, her politician-character has only got stronger and surer of herself. Off screen, the assuredness can be seen in the actor too. She says doing three-month workshops with co-actors Pankaj Tripathi, Ali Fazal, Vijay Varma and Rasika Dugal influenced her. “I got a taste of the kind of projects I want to do. I will work towards that with my future roles.”

Not many know that the actor comes from a film background—her father Vinod Talwar is an actor-producer. “OP Ralhan [filmmaker] was my dad’s mama. The passion my father brings to his work is inspiring. That’s why I’m the kind of person who didn’t quit even when I didn’t get work. Growing up, you have the khayali pulao in your head that you will be launched as an actor. Then you realise that no one will give you work just for that.” That brings us to the much debated topic of nepotism. Talwar says star kids only have the advantage of a big launch. “After that, everyone has the same challenges. Your work speaks for itself.”

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