When I first learned that I was to interview Pratibha Ranta for BeBeautiful's August cover story, I was intrigued. Like most people, especially women who watched her debut movie Laapataa Ladies — she played the ahead-of-her-time Jaya — I'd loved how it tapped into multiple archaic societal beliefs without shouting them out loud. Ranta from Shimla gets to say that she's worked with Aamir Khan, Kiran Rao, and Sanjay Leela Bhansali. Her debut movie was India's official entry to the Oscars, and she won the coveted IIFA for Best Debut (Female). And from what I learned over our hour long chat, she doesn't take any of it for granted.
Ranta steers far from every cliche attached to her Gen Z cohort. Sure, the 24-year-old believes in manifestation, but she knows it means nothing without putting in the work. "When I auditioned for Laapataa Ladies, I had seen everything about Aamir sir," she tells me via a video call. "I had read everything about him, watched BTS videos, everything. I was so well prepared that when I entered the room, I knew the room perfectly. My research was at that level."
