Aankhon Ki Gustaakhiyan director Santosh Singh on scrutiny of Shanaya Kapoor due to star kid tag: We should let her…

Hindustan Times

19-06-2025

After a couple of announced and subsequently shelved projects, Shanaya Kapoor is finally making her acting debut next month in a love story Aankhon Ki Gustaakhiyan with Vikrant Massey. The director of the film, Santosh Singh believes it was destiny that made it so. 'It's always good to get more actors in the industry and this is the correct film for Shanaya Kapoor to come into the industry. It is a challenging role, which we have not seen a lot of newcomers coming into the industry do. It's a very daring move what she has done,' he says.
Being a star kid, Shanaya's entry into films has been scrutinised and judged even before seeing her work on screen. Ask Santosh if this constant judgement does effect him as a maker and he says, 'In today's time, people are quick to jump in and start judging somebody. Of course, there's a bit of pressure about that, but we want to let Shanaya's work speak for itself. You see somebody's work and then you judge. That's the best way. Everyone should get a fair chance.'
Giving his take on nepotism, he adds, 'This whole debate is there, and there's no right or wrong to it. There are some star kids who are getting chances, but they're not delivering, and that leads to people judging them all. And their work is proving them right. So, if you're getting that chance, you need to give your 100% and prove yourself. It doesn't matter which background you come from, if your work is good, you will always be welcomed.'
He defends the work Shanaya has put in for her film and says, 'Shanaya's gone through the whole ordeal including months of workshops. Every day for four months, she'd send us videos of her progress after rehearsals. Until she was fully prepared, we didn't go on floors, so she has given her all to it.'
The first poster of Vikrant Massey and Shanaya together brought along some criticism with people pointing out the age gap between the pair. Reacting to it, Santosh says, 'People will react to it how they want but when you see the film, you will get all your answers. It is as simple as that, it's the requirement of the story. I'm not worried about it because I know how lovely they are looking, and how well they are complimenting each other on screen. It's a very unusual pairing, but the story demanded that unusual pairing to happen.'
He also raves about Vikrant, who he had previously directed in his OTT debut series Broken But Beautiful. Now, making his theatrical debut with him again, Santosh discusses what makes him so relatable as a romantic hero: 'It's an unusual choice for him to do love stories as people don't see him as a romantic actor, especially makers. But after our show, I realised he's so natural and effortless in this genre. With him, it doesn't feel like there's a hero doing it, it feels like a common person doing a common love story, so it connects well with the masses because you see yourself in him.'