Sana Khan: No agency gets you work; forget films, they couldn’t even get me events

It’s said that when the going gets tough, the tough get going. And so, actor Sana Khan is remaining optimistic about her Bollywood career — “I’m trying to be the best version of me,” she says — even though things have been slow of late. Having got noticed after the Salman Khan-starrer Jai Ho (2014), Sana worked in the erotic thriller Wajah Tum Ho (2016), and had a small role in the Akshay Kumar-starrer Toilet: Ek Prem Katha (2017). However, that one breakout role is still not on the horizon.

Sana, who aspires to work with top banners and filmmakers, says “I really don’t know [when that will happen] and I don’t think much. Ho sakta hai main yahan tak bhi na pahunchi hoti ya aane wale time mein wahan pahunch jaun (I might not have reached even till this point, or I might get there in the future). So, it’ll always be a question mark until it happens for real. But, I’m the kind of person who’s fine with where I am. You have to make peace with yourself.”

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However, Sana is not losing hope and she clearly is not someone who’s hesitant to go out and ask for work. “You see, I’m not a 15-year-old who has just started off in the film industry. I’m going to work really hard, promote myself, meet my friends and ask for work, too. I’m trying to be the best version of me. If things are destined to happen, big directors will notice me and work will come my way.”

Having said this, Sana adds that surviving in Bollywood all alone has been a task in itself. “I don’t have agencies presenting me, no big production house launching me, nobody from the industry backing me. I am all alone and have spent 14 years in this industry; and I am proud that I’ve survived for so long without any support,” says the actor.

Asked why she doesn’t believe in promoting herself rigorously through a publicist or a PR team, Sana says, “PR only works for big names, because they’ve already achieved something. If you’re talking about an ordinary person, what would your PR machinery do where there’s no product in the machine? You have to have substance to prove. Stars like Priyanka Chopra and Deepika Padukone already have work projects in hand, and then, they’ve also reached a point, so it makes sense to promote [their] work.”

Stating that “no agency can get you any work”, Sana says that’s the reason she now doesn’t rely on anyone. “I’ve been with all [the agencies]. No artist gets work through an agency and it’s only working artists who keep getting more work. If I’m with an agency and the media want something from me, the agency gets that done. But, mind you, they don’t get you more work. Forget about movies, they couldn’t even get me events,” says Sana.

Interact with Monika Rawal Kukreja at Twitter/@monikarawal