Meghana Kaushik “Organic Extension Of Self”

She is a successful VO artist and an RJ with All India Radio, a self confessed avid traveler, a full time fitness enthusiast and recently started her new innings as a screen writer. Leaving a lucrative profession of a journalist, she hankered after acting, her passion. She bagged the role of Sanjana in the hit film NEERJA and more recently, a Prima Donna singer, Nikita D’souza in a web series titled LOVE LUST & CONFUSION for VIU Clips India. She is also a model who is seen in several big TV campaigns such as Pepper fry, SBI Cancer Suraksha, Myntra, Tanishq, Dove, Shopper Stop etc. Meghana Kaushik – who aspires to make a mark in the film industry shares her aspiration and goals with Devyani Purkayastha in an exclusive interview.

Let us know Meghana as a person
I came from an army background and grown up in lots of small places in India, places we wouldn’t that even heard of. Those are very small but I think that upbringing sort of as a person made me love travel and also people, food. No, lot of army schools, small convent, mix of all of that and it was a beautiful journey and obviously as a army kid I was exposed to so many different people at a young age. Every 2 years you make new friends, your best friends keeps changing so by the time you reach cold you have so many more friends. I suppose to have 2-3 friends to be grown up with and I have always been very passionate about sports, my dad who was a basketball champion in his college days. He use to play for cordinal. He was very encouraging to me and my brother. He use to be like “Play sports”. So I would literally come back home, put my bag, eat my lunch and by 3:30 I was in the swimming pool doing water Pollos, swimming championship, tenis in winter’s, horse riding early in the morning. I did a lot of things . I use to come home like 8:30-9 when I was even little girl because I just didn’t feel like being home. Home was boring. I was somebody who never wanted to miss school because I had so much fun going to the school .I never bunked classes. I was very good student, did really well in exams.

So, did you enjoy your school days?
Alot, I think school was the best part of my life. I could do it all over again. I could just for back and start. I was a teacher’s pet specially my English teacher. There’s something about English teachers . The way they read, dress up, romanticize the fiction, novels, books that we would read and part of me always wanted to enact so gradually that’s when I exposed myself in theater.

Why did you expose yourself in theaters? How the interest in acting developed?
Because I was always very pro in reading plays. It was just an organic extension of myself. I was extremely active in extra-curricular activities. I was doing debates, auditions, sports, theaters like everything in school. So there was something Meghna has to be there. A community being formed Meghna had to represent it. It was somewhat like that because I was just very go to person for everything. Sometimes I just feel it’s a blessing to have had the parent’s that supports you in all of this. Instead of them forcing you to study they would tell me not to study so much because I use to always b up in exam days, I use to not sleep at all. I would come back from school do my sports, then study all night, go to my paper the next morning and again the next day the same pattern follows . So my parents were scared like “Oh my god, this women is hyper energy”.

How did you land in Mumbai?
Mumbai happened because of my best friend. I was in Delhi working as a journalist. He knew this is not what I wanted to do for the rest of my life because he know me really well.

So you studied journalism?
Yes, I studied journalism and then started working as a journalist. I worked with Headlines Today. Did lot of internships in college. I worked with Indian Express, Hindustan Times 7 years back during 2011-2012. I studied Bachelors in Journalism from Delhi University. We had some extra system. Every 6 months we had to do internships and give our exams.

So were you based in Delhi?
Yes, i was studying there living in a hostel because my parents were posted in Jodhpur so i was living in the army hostel and studying in that was an another experience of living away from family. Taste of Independence makes you realise how to manage your pocket money. First parents use to pay for everything but now you have to pay for your convenience, fee,money for coffee’s, shopping. Thats when i realised that its amazing for a women to be independent because you cannot just take care of yourself but you can actually support your friends. Your family not has to complaint about “Humari Beti is asking for money” that should never happen. That for me was very important because i wanted to actually be able to pay back for all the lovely years that they had spend spoiling me. So that came very early in my life. I always wanted to put together money for holidays so i have been able to do that couple of times now. I’m really greatful. Its just a small homage that could pay to my parents.

Why did you think that you cannot be successful journalist?
It’s not like that. My heart was not into journalism. I would have been enjoyed facing the camera more as an actor than I as a news anchor.

You went for modelling as well!
Yes, I did a number of modelling assignments for prints and ramp shows in Delhi. While working with Headlines Today I have started modelling along side. That time, I didn’t have the courage to quit a good job.

Were your parents happy with your decision to quit journalism?
No, initially they were scared. After quitting my job I didn’t inform my parents about it for almost 3 months. When I visited my parents in Jaipur, this was revealed. My father was septical about it. I had told them that I would like to pursue something I love though journalism is a very respected profession. I was not enjoying my work. I want to a brand of myself which was not possible as a journalist.

Which assignments have you taken up now?
I am doing a web series which is for a renowned platform. I can’t disclose it as I am not allowed to do so. However, the series is directed by Ayush Raina, which also stars Pratik Babbar, Rahul Dev, Sara Jean Dias. There are two films in the pipeline. One of the films will on floor in August-September where I am playing the lead and another big banner film will start from October where I am the parallel lead.