Kunickaa Sadanand, known for her stint in TV and films, on returning to acting as she seeks roles with a message
Kunickaa Sadanand
It takes courage to walk away from everything you know to start anew. However, for Kunickaa Sadanand, that has been the norm. When her career was flourishing, she took a break to focus on her family. Despite the setbacks, she was not one to fall into pieces. She ventured into other facets of filmmaking, joined politics, and studied law. Having done all that, the actor says she misses being in front of the camera and getting under the skin of a new character every day. Popularly known for playing a mother at 18 in the hit daily soap Swabhimaan, she was last seen in Akbar Birbal (2015) and Dilli Wali Thakur Gurls (2015). While she is eagerly waiting for the results of the exams to practice as a lawyer in the Supreme Court, Sadanand has been making calls and touching base with filmmakers and casting agents seeking acting work.
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“I was working on Akbar Birbal when I decided to take a break. I wanted to explore other interests, and that’s when I got involved in various projects as an associate producer with Priyanka Chopra. I produced three films with her,” she revealed. “I also pursued my law degree and engaged in social work. It was a fulfilling phase, but I always had a deep-rooted passion for acting.” In 2020, Sadanand was seen in Bejoy Nambiar’s Taish. “I wish to explore the web more. I have no qualms calling up people asking for work. I had messaged Sanjay Leela Bhansali, expressing that I wished to work with him. However, I am aware that I am not an A-lister and that they’d not clamour to cast me immediately just because I expressed an interest,” says the actor.
The road to staying relevant Sadanand says it is an important one and she has been actively upping her social media game. She expresses, “Sadly, that’s what people judge you on these days. But they are also right in a way. I have been active on Instagram and my YouTube channel. And I have a decent amount of followers too, as per the agency. You have to stay connected with the audience. I think that’s what’s important.”
When asked if she would get back to television and movies, the actor shares that she is looking for projects that speak to her and don’t conform to her glamorous image. “TV is suffering from a massive financial crunch because the audience has shifted. Budgets have been slashed. I don’t want to do the typical saas-bahu drama where there is regression and women are being tortured or seen as silent spectators. The film industry always caters to what the audience wants. Then there are things that you least expect, like how Stree 2 did. The idea is to keep experimenting and consistently do it. I want good roles with a message. I would love to audition for something like that,” she signs off.