Nora Fatehi's SHOCKING Untold Story: I was cheated and bullied | O Saki Saki | Dilbar | Nora Fatehi 2021

 

Nora Fatehi's SHOCKING Untold Story: I was cheated and bullied | O Saki Saki | Dilbar | Nora Fatehi 2021

Listen there's a formula in this industry don't break the formula don't

do songs don't do South songs don't do reality shows don't do TV you do any of

this stuff you're over pack your bags go back to your country like that it's

It's always just bullying yeah come here and see her Hindi calling everybody to come

look like I'm some circus you know what I mean

at that time I was at you know what Nora you're sacrificing 20 lakhs for a bigger picture

So I'm just like I have to make it I have to make it

She's already danced her way to your hearts but with her performance in Batla House she's

expected and planning to take you by a sweet surprise Welcoming Nora Fatehi

in a conversation with PinkVilla Thank you NayandeepI just know your name yeah I've

I've been really good of course I am overwhelmed with the response I'm

getting for Saki. Yeah you know not today you've created a space of your own um

that's primarily happened right after Dilbar let's start with where you

started you know the humble beginnings that you come from

you never had a godfather in the industry what is difficult the first few

years. It still is difficult today some people don't really know I actually am

from Canada so I came from Toronto with the idea of being able to kind of work

in the entertainment industry here so I came with via an agency and you know

life for foreigners in India through agencies is very difficult we go through

a lot and people don't know you know we go through they take our money they

don't give us our money. That's happened to you. Yeah it's happened to me I've

lost like like I remember my first agency which I came from Canada to India

that agency was really aggressive with their models in terms of. 

behavior and stuff and I didn't feel like I was being guided the right way

with them so I wanted to leave them so in order to leave they're like okay so

we're not gonna give you your money. And that was how much money. That was at that time 20 Lakhs

yeah which I had made from my first ever ad campaign I did with Dove

that was like my first ever opportunity in front of the camera in a commercial

you know acting and doing all that and I did a couple of commercials after Dove I

did one with Virat Kohli for Toyota I did one for Parachute Body Lotion so I was a

face for a lot of brands when I came to India initially which is how I knew

that I had a knack for being in front of a camera

unfortunately because I wanted to leave that agency to pursue a better

management I had to sacrifice at that time I was at you know what Nora you're

sacrificing 20 lakhs for a bigger picture you know what I mean and it

really hurt at that time for me but I saw a lot of other girls in my situation

who had to go through the same thing who who would leave India after their

contract is done and they would never get their money

I remember initially when I first came you know I had to share an apartment

with a lot of girls yeah and you don't you're not told that you know when

you're coming from Canada to India as a model they don't say by

the way you're gonna share an apartment eight girls you know what I'm saying so

That must have been really difficult also. I was shocked I walk into this apartment there's eight girls

and I'm freaking out you know and you know there was a lot of competition and

in between like they stole my passport and that's like leave the country and go

back home to Canada it was crazy just for this dream of

becoming entertainer and Bollywood had to go through so much. This was when

This was like five years back. Okay. Yeah but I overcame all that and then I kind of

became headstrong in India now it's like I am gonna do this so I got a Hindi

teacher started learning Hindi in the I started going for auditions

You know auditions were very traumatic for me because I was being sent

to auditions when I was just learning Hindi do you know what I mean so it was

like you know a little bit of Hindi. Go go go give

the audition I'm not really mentally prepared you know so I would make a fool

out of myself and people are like unforgiving you know

so they would laugh Leave mean comments I mean they would laugh in front of my

face. Come come see her Hindi like this calling everybody to come look at like

I'm some circus you know what I mean I used to go through all that right now

it's funny when I discuss this with my friends I laugh but at that time I

What the hell am I doing and then you know and then I'd go back home and like very

dramatic I sit in a rickshaw and cry in the rickshaw like howling and the

rickshaw driver would be like is everything okay and I would be like just take me

home and I'd come home and start crying and my friend would ask why are you crying the

because everyone's laughing at me you know she's like shut up clean

your face and you know just just do your thing so I had to go through a lot of

like humiliation people laughing at me at auditions

I remember one casting director she ripped me apart she told me why are you

even here so I was like because I want to like make it you know I have a dream

I have a passion I want to act I want to dance I want to be a performer I want to

entertain people no no no go back to your country like that we already have

people like you go back you know I was just like so we have to face a lot of that stuff

so you know Nora you were talking about casting

directors misbehaving and the woman but there are a lot of men who are predators

you know and there are so many men who were named also right and did you come

across something like that was it like humiliating for us to see. I never like

came across but like sexual pressure nothing like that always it's always

just bullying yeah like why are you here your Hindi is s*** you can do this you

can't do that we have too many people like you this is what I used to face do you know

what I mean or sometimes I would face like me begging for someone just to take

my audition and them not answering my phone call or not answering my messages

stuff like that I think one one one situation which I'll never forget would

probably be that one casting director who like just told me I should go back

she said we don't want people like you here

like Canada doesn't have an entertainment industry but

Hollywood does but LA does right and when I look at LA I'm just like

there's a diversity of people there everybody you keep anyone can go and try

their luck you know if you have the talent and the passion go for it

nobody is gonna tell you go back to your country you know what I mean why are you

here so when I heard that I was just like you know what hurt me the most

we grew up watching Hindi cinema when I say we I mean like Moroccan people like

that the Arabs we watch Hindi cinema we idolize Hindi cinema you know what I

mean when you go to Morocco you need to see what they do about Shahrukh Khan

they're crazy about Shahrukh Khan like Shahrukh Khan pictures are everywhere people

love him you know what I mean Amitabh Bachchan you know what I'm saying

like Madhuri Dixit ma'am Kajol everybody they're obsessed with them and then to

come to India and then have someone tell you why you here get out of here you

know we don't want you it was like oh my god but we love you you know what I mean

we love this industry that we grew up with this industry you know what I mean

But are these people your friends or family. It's like everybody you know

trying to say like people I know colleagues associates classmates friends

everybody do you know what I mean family - they're like what

different story but so I was inbetween people here are saying go back home I

can't go back home because they're telling me why did you leave anyways so

I'm just like I have to make it I have to make it but it's been a long journey

Long journey. They must be super proud of you given the space that you've created

for yourself today. Yes for sure. You have broken the glass ceiling you know with

Dilbar and actually with Bahubali the song yeah and then now Dilbar because Dilbar

was the most popular track of last year and maybe for the years to come

um do you see a change in perception among these people who initially

criticized you . For sure yes yes for sure I feel like so initially when when I

started getting work like my first film was a film called Roar Tigers of the Sundarbans

in which I was acting in so I remember at that time the people

around me would say a lot of things like listen there's a formula in this

industry don't break the formula don't do

songs don't do South songs don't do reality shows don't do TV you do any of

the stuff you're over pack your bags go back to your country like that so one

day I woke up and I was like why am I even listening to everybody I'm gonna do

whatever work comes my way so reality shows came my way I did them I did Big

Boss yeah I did Jhalak you know what I mean

South songs came my way I did all the South songs and one year I did like 11

songs do you know what I mean I just said work just come to me you never know

who's gonna see me so imagine I got Bahubali because of the other South

songs I did if I haven't known if I didn't do those South songs yeah then

that director would have never thought of me for Bahubali true so everything

in my career has been connected. By dots. One opened another door opened another

door opened another door and Dilbar happened because of one show I did in

the south like a Miss Femina diva awards show I did so when they were casting for

Dilbar they seen that video and they're like this is the style we want for

Dilbar yeah so they had called me asked me this is if I can do this for Dilbar

Yeah sure you know so that's how Dilbar happened for me and of course

Kamariya also happened but Kamariya I shot before Dilbar and Kamariya happened

because of Bahubali so everything was connected but as you can see it's it's

in the end of the day it's a song that made me kind of explode. Thank you for

this lovely conversation because it was nice to know that kind of struggles that

you've gone through I don't think a lot of people know that. Yeah. They just know how you are and

how you dance people should actually get to know the real story behind your life you

know it's and it's what you've done is incredible. Thank you I really appreciate it

All the best. Thank you so much. And thank you for having me