Kanika Maheshwari who is an actor par excellence, known for her work in the show Diya Aur Baati Hum is on happy ground after her short film on cancer made it to the Chicago South Asian Festival.
The 13 minutes short, Forever Whim is the tale of a terminally ill cancer patient mother and her relationship with her five-year-old daughter.
Kanika who has inspired herself on the writing front with this short film has bigger plans in mind to groom and develop her writing skills.
Says Kanika, “I love being an actor, as playing different roles has always fascinated me. But when it came to writing, it was difficult as a writer. You have to see the craft of the story, screenplay, and dialogues. But I enjoyed writing Forever Whim because I did not try to write something unusual. I just wrote what I felt. So for a writer, feelings are very important.”
“As an actor, you need to prepare your lines and do your make-up, but behind the camera, you have to look into each and every aspect of film making. I am very thankful to my husband Ankur Ghai who helped and supported me throughout and I had a lovely supporting team with me!”
On bigger aspirations as Writer, Kanika explains, “First it’s always an idea. When you put the right soil and water into it, it definitely grows. Though you can’t control the kind of growth, the growth is visible to the eye. In the same way, I never thought that this short film of mine will be so big. But definitely, now I think that I am on the right path and this is my journey to make good films. I am enjoying the process.”
Does it mean you wish to write and tell more stories? “Oh yes, I have a lot of things in my mind. And now with my film release, people will have more faith in me. And I know I can pull bigger things with a bigger budget.”
On what can be expected from the short film she says, “Viewers can expect pure feelings and emotions. There are times when you watch a full feature-length film and you can’t get connected. But I can promise you that with my 13 minutes film that you will have tears in your eyes and if you have lost someone in your life, you will remember them. So have your handkerchief around you!!”
