Genelia Deshmukh

Genelia Deshmukh: So I'd love to share my journey. I hope I don't bore you guys but I'd love to share my journey. I Not Mugbil Ahmar: at all.

It's, it's a pleasure. Genelia Deshmukh: I started off, actually, acting was never a, an, was never a career option for me, honestly. I wouldn't relate to myself that way.

I came from a very middle class home. There were no actors. There was nobody from the industry at all in it.

I happened to be sitting outside my college and you know, when you're young, they come to colleges and they pick up these, kids to be part of the background. So all my friends were going and I was very excited to go because I was like, "You know, we're all gonna hang for the day."

And we ended up going there and the girl who was opposite the main actor had not turned up. So they came to me and they asked me to come there and be the second lead, you know, opposite the girl. I was so upset.

I was like, "No, I wanna be in the crowd. I wanna be part of the crowd. Like, that's what I came here to do, have a good day."

But anyways, I went there. That ad never really happened eventually, and it was all a lull. But at that, at that ad shoot, something went right and I started getting these calls, from a lot of people randomly.

Like, there was no kind of. I didn't have, like, a portfolio done. I didn't have, like you know, things put into place.

My aunt always saw me as someone who could be part of, modeling and the industry. I never saw myself at all. My parents thought she was crazy, absolutely, because my parents were like, "Don't spoil our child."

Then the industry was a big, bad word. The film industry, you know? But having said that, so she took out these pictures literally of me cutting a cake and stuff like that and she was like, "I think that you have potential."

And then what I the next thing I know is that I was selected for an ad with Mr. Bachchan, which was a big deal. I mean, and it'll always be the biggest Of course, of course. Of my career. And from there, I it just never stopped.

It, from there, from my first ad itself, I started getting movie offers. From movie offers, I started getting better movie offers. Then I had a break for 10 years and I thought, and like everyone says, you know, once an actor takes that break, you're not coming back.

But I got back on screen and I'm very grateful that Aamir Khan Productions has, you know, signed me on. So I think my journey has been a totally unplanned one. But I think if I've done anything right, I've given it my 100%.

So, it has earned some fruits somewhere and and I am who I am today, all through the love, all through, a zillion blessings.

And I think most importantly, when you see my characters or when you relate to me as an actor, the biggest, the biggest blessing that I have is that I'm taken back home to two families and to their homes, which I think as an actor, more than your thousand, awards and the biggest films that you get, you are part of people's homes.

So 10 years down the line, people in the south and people here still remember me as Aditi or still remember me as Haasanie, and I think there's nothing more rewarding than that. We all wait for validation, right? We all wait that if you get an award, you've validated the fact that you've done well.

But we forget to realize and open our eyes to see that after 15 years, Jaan-E-Mann has been 15 years ago, people still relate to you as Aditi. I mean, what more validation do you need in that zone? So that's been pretty much my journey.

Mugbil Ahmar: A round of applause, of course. Thank you. There's no need to ask for it now. But I would say that, you have been, one of the luckiest persons on the planet.

Thank you. Because when we talk to actors or when actors tell their stories, and of course, Bombay's full of them. You know, people who never made it or people who made it. They all come up with stories like, you know, "I slept on the street.

I didn't have things to eat. I was starving." This and that. I mean, there are stories of struggle and all of that, but you have been Genelia Deshmukh: Yes, I have.

Hugely lucky. I mean I have. Absolutely. I can't disagree with your statement. I absolutely think I've been really lucky.

I See, everyone has their own crosses to bear, and I think everyone, whether it's, we talk about nepotism, we talk about all of that, but everyone is having their own cross that they're carrying.

So yeah, while someone's struggle might have been, you know, spending the entire night on the road, my struggle could have been just not understanding what's going on at all and you know, put, being put into a place Mugbil Ahmar: Which movie to pick. Genelia Deshmukh: No, I mean, from my first film, I didn't know what was going on. I would just cry and cry, you know, initially because you don't know how to be correct.

You don't know what is correct. But having said that, I cannot deny the fact that I've been extremely lucky, extremely lucky to be in the place that I've been. Mugbil Ahmar: I wish I had a similar struggle like you.

So, Genelia, you also spoke about the break that you took, and it would be great if you could dwell a little more on it, you know, how it happened, why it happened, and then consequently you came back also. All of that, and how has this journey been to being a mother, married life, all of that?

Genelia Deshmukh: Yes. So I got married in 2012 and you know, like everyone and every individual, after a a particular time in your life, you feel everything is monotonous and you you're not reinventing yourself. I felt my chance to just take a break was at the time that I got married because I wanted to give my 100% to the family that I was in.

So prior to that, I worked 365 days. I worked in four industries, you know. So while people thought I was just doing, you know, Bollywood films.

I was doing films all over the south, which. I mean, today the south is a big deal. Then people didn't know that the, that, you know, such big films.

I've been part of Rajamouli's Absolutely. And a round of applause for that. Yeah. Yeah. Genelia has worked in four different film industries- Yeah.

And very versatile as an actor. Yes. Yeah. So that was my, part of, you know, doing work, and honestly I missed all birthdays. I missed, you know, every time my family got together, I was hardly around, because I was working.

Because of the fact that I was not just stationary at one place, I had to travel to four different industries. So when I got married, I decided to take a break. I thought it would be a year, a year and a half, but then I got my babies, and I didn't understand how to multitask, you know?

I was like, "I could either be this or I could be that." I don't think I was 100% happy in that zone because I thought there was so much more to me to give also. And I thought I was very happy, and I thought I was doing a great job, but Ritesh saw me and he said, "You need to get back to the screen because that's what you love."

I was like, "I can't do this and that." He said, "You can do everything. You're a mom, and you'll figure it out."

And I kept saying, yeah, it's so easy for him to talk. I have to do all this hard work, you know? But he kept pushing me through this period that I was off to a point when he decided to direct, he said, "You have to act in it."

Now I couldn't say no Because I was like. So he said, "You'll figure it out." And I started acting back again with that film, and I realized I figured it out.

And I realized I was a much happier mom. I was a much happier person at home because I was doing what I loved the most. I was doing something that was mine versus, you know, when you when we become moms, we forget the fact that we are individuals as well, and we can do a lot, you know?

I mean, of course, handling a home is handling the biggest thing ever. Of course. But I also think we do it thinking that it's our duty to do it, and we don't know how to do better.

Sure. But if you sit and strategize and figure out your life, I feel that you can do both, and you should do both because there's, there's an element of you that you're losing out on, when you don't put yourself back into what you're meant to do. And that's why I came back to films. I started, you know, doing films again.

I don't do it as often as I used to, but that's fine. That's a small thing, small adjustment that you make in your life, and a happy one too. And today I'm back to doing.

I'm doing a film in Hindi. I'm doing one. I did a film in Marathi, which was, which was widely acclaimed, and also a new industry that I was part of. And then there's also, I'm doing a South film again.

So it's, it's the whole system. It's the whole cycle starting back again. I'm very excited with my new phase into films.

I've seen a lot change. I've seen a lot evolve, and all in a good way. Mugbil Ahmar: I would want to say that you have had an envious life.

Yes. And again, say that you are one of the luckiest people on the planet. Why I'm saying that is because.

And a round of applause for that. Her husband is the one who pushed her back into acting. Generally, we also come across these stories, and there is a perception- Yeah.

That once women get married, there is a resistant- Yes. Resistance to them to continue to working in this industry. It's been the exact opposite with you.

Opposite. It it has. So again, you're very lucky. Genelia Deshmukh: Yes, I am, or maybe I'm just amazing.

Mugbil Ahmar: I think I'll need some of your luck. So, you know, and you are also an entrepreneur. Yes. I Yes.

Yes. We must add that to your terribly, to your wonderfully- Yes. You know, versatile personality. That, being a mom, acting, production- Yes.

And you know, being involved in that side of it, you also have your own venture. Yes. So how did this thought of becoming an entrepreneur come, and if you could, you know, really share a little about your, Sure. Yes. We would love to know it.

Genelia Deshmukh: Yeah, so my venture's called Impossible Foods. Again, it is something that's related to food tech. It is, it is a very new market.

It's something that me and Ritesh lived in the US for three years, and we were non-vegetarian eaters who gave up our non-veg then. Initially we thought vegetarian food meant only peas and potatoes, and then we went there and we realized there's so much more, and it's, it's probably even better than a non-veg, a non-vegetarian palate, which is only chicken or fish or you know, that's it.

But when we went there, we realized that the food tech was so much on the rise. Of course, it's a developing market. It's more startup-ish, so it has its N number of issues that keep arising, that, the big giants that keep saying, "No, this is not it.

This is it." But in our, in our venture, the primary thing was we realized that most. And because we are so much into fitness as well, we realized that the primary source of a of I mean, a primary source of vegetarian protein is extremely less, you know, most often.

And most vegetarians would incorporate, a, an egg or a chicken in their diet much against what they feel or believe just because of a protein, requirement. So we felt if we could change that around, and we could give protein-rich foods which are tasty, which are fine, it would make the whole world.

I mean, it would make it A market that could be developed is what we felt when we started Imagine Foods. We weren't aiming to say that we're vegan, we are a meat alternative, all those various things that come out in it. Our basic intent was that if you feel like, if you feel like reducing your meat consumption, you still have your taste with it.

If you feel as a vegetarian you need more protein, you need a meal that is easy, that's another, that's another, added advantage to it. And as an most of us have such busy schedules, and we don't have the time to really cook, and we land up just eating out and you know, just eating what we get.

I mean, I've been part of that when, you know, it's a long night shoot, and I just like, "Give me Maggie. I'm fine with it," you know? Give me just like something that's easier to cook.

So being really convenient, being a product that was really convenient where you could make it at home was. And be, and having all the elements of it, be it, you know, your protein content, zero cholesterol. We wanted to put something like that out there.

And we are evolving every day, because like I say, we are food tech. We're not just a food service. We are food tech today.

And there is something that's developed every day. Of course, we as an entrepreneur, I did realize that while the West has developed with their cold storage, setup, in India there is a mindset against it which needs to be, educated, I mean, which we need to be educated about very often. Because we relate to, frozen foods as stale foods very often, you know?

Because we're okay to keep our food in a fridge, in a refrigerated condition for 10 days maybe or maybe a week, and we'll think it's still fresh because we kept it there. But the amount of bacteria that gets into that versus freezing it fresh. And when I say freezing it fresh, people always go back to the point of it being preservatives, right?

Everyone thinks that there's a, there's an N number of preservatives into it, or it is processed food. But I'm like, if you use oil and salt, that is. I mean, we've made it a bad word, right?

We've made, we've made it a bad word. And there are, there are, there have been a lot of spoilages, there have been a lot of things that have happened in that zone, so I don't, I don't feel that the consumer's wrong in feeling it. But the education of freezing something at a minus 18, at a minus 32 is just not there.

Because then you're freezing it fresh, and all you're doing is you're thawing it and you're putting it out there with zero preservatives. Which is an education and which is a fighting, a battle, I think, every day, which will eventually someday open up. But that's the zone that we wanted to go in.

We wanted to make life easier for a mom, because I found it tough when I got back to acting. We wanted it to have the protein that you need to have without it having any cholesterol in it. Like zero cholesterol in it.

And we wanted it to be a source of a substitute to every non-vegetarian or flexitarian which wants to reduce their meat consumption on certain days, just like how we did. I mean, we were, we were, we ate, we were non-vegetarian seven days a week. And then we started giving it up, and we realized we still craved it, right?

And when we had substitutes, we could manage our way out. So that's been my journey as an entrepreneur. Initially when we started off, it was a small unit, and it it still is, because it's a startup.

And with the startup you have all the things that come about it, but you're also a risk-taker, which you don't get to be in other organizations. And I think that's the beauty of startup, and digitalization has helped this happen, helped a startup see new venues, new avenues, new ways of life. It's just when you're ready and how ready you are and how much you are going to use it to your benefit that's important.

Mugbil Ahmar: I think going by the luck that you've had this venture is also going to be a huge hit. You seem to think I have no hard work.

No, of course. It's, it involves a lot of hard work. But I have been particularly, you know, coming as I do, I mean, my main profession is that of a technology journalist.

I've been loving this conversation because you have used words like digitalization- Yeah. Startup, food tech, and I'Yeah. Very close to both parts of the word.

Yeah. And I love them. So it's amazing the way you've been talking about food tech. Yeah. The way you have been talking about digitalization, which is impacting our lives so much.

But before we go in that direction, you know, how do you really marry the two brands, you know, which, you know, which come in from your personality, that of an entrepreneur and an actor? And do they influence each other? Do they impact? Do they.

Genelia Deshmukh: So, you know, when I sit with the team, and today I'm in a better position, when I started off it was just two of us, me and Ritesh, trying to put this whole thing together. And I have to tell you I learned all about the supply chain. I heard, learned about distribution.

My God. I these were A round of applause. These were, these were, these were honestly words that didn't figure out in my life at all. But it was, it was so amazing.

It was, it was unbelievable. Ritesh and me, like, every time we met entrepreneurs and we met, we met, you know, professionals, we would literally Google what they say. Because they would use, like, MOQ, this, that, and we're like, "What is that?

One second. Let me, like, Google and see what's happening." But having said that, after, like, two years of being at Imagine, we came back, we we're back to a place where we do have a team now. We do have a supply chain head.

We do have a sales head. We have a business mentor who's on board. And I keep telling the.

And when we sit about marketing, they're like, "Oh, marketing is sorted out." We're like, "No, it's not sorted out." It's about being honest.

Like most people tell me You know, just go ahead and use this oil, palm oil, and use this. I'm like, "No, I'm a mom first, so I'll figure that dynamics." it made me take me longer, but it's just something that I have to sleep back with my conscience.

So I'll just deal with that part a bit. Having said that, I do think that, being in the position that we are, Ritesh and me, we do have that slight leeway ahead in terms of we are our, we are the face of our brand very often, which would be, which would be quite a spend in term of marketing for a startup had it not been for us.

We are socially active, which makes it so much easier. But we've always been on the side of actors. Like, today we are as entrepreneurs, and honestly, what I do realize that, what I do realize that digitally we have got closer to is consumers' preferences.

So there is some kind of transparency. Like, I get questions every day on, Imagine Food website saying, "What is this? What is that?" You have the option of going there and messaging the company and saying, "What is this and what is that?"

Something that you don't have in larger setups, right? And that's, that's where, startups hold a little bit of that kind of flavor all over. So having, coming back to your point, I do think make, being an actor has aided in my journey of being an entrepreneur, but I wouldn't be able to make it if I was only an actor.

I have to be an invested founder. I have to have the ability to know that I hand it over to professionals versus trying to grab the whole limelight, which is what we we we are very clear about. If it's someone who believes in you and has the right kind of aptitude to take it does need people like that, versus you just.

You can aid it. You can't, you can't, you can't develop a market in that zone. Mugbil Ahmar: I couldn't agree more with you and I must also say that I'm loving this conversation because, you know, because of the way you have been talking about technology, and I hope, I'm assuming maybe next year we will have a stall I really do hope.

From you. You have so much I really, I really do hope too. So last question. You know, the time is up. What's your favorite technology?

I mean, I'm asking this, I wouldn't have asked otherwise, but looking at how clued you are into the domain of technology and how knowledgeable you are, you have so much of information of what is happening in the digital world. What's your favorite technology, and what would you want to do with it? Genelia Deshmukh: You know, I have to make an honest confession.

I was technically challenged a few years ago. I was literally technically challenged, and I realized that I'm technically challenged because I'm proving myself to be technically challenged, not because I'm opening my eyes and seeing what is out there in the world. And then I started the process of understanding how much it can help.

Today, if you ask me, be it in Mumbai Film Company, where, which is our production house, or be it in our food tech company at Imagine, I just see the best. And and for me, the best kind of digitalization or the best kind of tools that is, that is out there is AI. I think it's a world of its own.

It's helping you create a whole ecosystem. Good, bad, ugly is up to you to figure it out, I feel, but the opportunity which was never there all these years is there for you. Today, I feel business, you know, business honchos, big people are changing their whole business strategy around AI.

They're developing more markets. They're figuring out availability through digitalization. And and when I keep specifying on transparency and clarity, I think all this is what, digitalization has got us closer to.

For me, AI would be a win for the next I don't know how many years ahead. But I do think what digitalization has done is it's given you this tool. Are you ready or not?

Are you ready to harness its power is up to you. Now, when you are, maybe you're two years later like me. I took two years to figure it out.

But two years down the line, I don't know how to do without it. Like, today I want to do True. I go for every conference.

I try and get, my knowledge up. I mean, I'm an actor, yeah, great, and I'll sit and I'll do hair and makeup when I have to, and I'll do my 100% with being lucky. No, But yeah.

I have to give it to you. Yeah. You're very hardworking. Yeah. Hardworking lucky. No, but when I'm trying to do, something that I'm trying to understand how to push my startup ahead, I will try and understand it from a digital medium because it's my easiest way to reach my consumer, my client.

I honestly see AI as, the number one out there. Mugbil Ahmar: A huge round of applause. Thanks. I mean, I can actually, you know, I can visualize you giving a presentation on Oh, I hope so.

In our next edition. Genelia Deshmukh: I really hope so. Mugbil Ahmar: You are so clued into it, you know, as opposed to a lot of people who are still not that clued into it, you know, coming from the industry.

It's an amazing thing. And Genelia, it's been a wonderfully, a lovely talk with you today. Thank you so much.

And thank you so much for your time and sharing your journey, your stories, and your thoughts, most importantly. Genelia Deshmukh: No, thank you for the wonderful interview. I we both spoke before we reached here, just for you guys to know, and I'm like, I just need to spend more time with him because he knows everything.

I just wanna know so much more. Like, it's amazing. Mugbil Ahmar: No. Now I think you know more than me.

And we are going to have this presentation someday. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you so much.

Genelia Deshmukh: Thank you so much for having me here. Thank you so much. Join our global community of English learners absolutely free.

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