Darsheel Safary recalls being bullied after Taare Zameen Par success, says he feels ‘lucky’ to not be a star-kid

Actor Darsheel Safary, who became a sensation after the film Taare Zameen Par in 2008, had practically vanished from the public eye, except for a few glimpses at some events. Darsheel, who is 25 now, revealed that he thought he would be an established actor at this age and ‘sorted spiritually’. However, the pandemic changed a lot of things for him and 2021 was particularly challenging for him.
Talking to Times Of India, Darsheel revealed that he had a ‘crisis of sorts’. He had been in talks with many filmmakers, and unfortunately in the wake of the second wave, it all went for a toss. He was also hit a lot of crippling doubts, and reassurances from his parents to have more patience went in vain.

He also added that there were several people who came up to him and were under the impression that he had quit acting. “Eventually I decided ‘ye sab gaya tel lene (let’s not be bothered)’ and I ought to be myself,” he said.

After the success of TZP, he faced much bullying in school — he was surrounded, his clothes were pulled. “I had to take a half-day to save myself. But, I understand that an actor has to be prepared,” he said.  On whether he would prefer to work in Bollywood camps, he said that he hasn’t given much thought to it. He called it akin to taking a short cut. Prodded on whether this statement indicates if he didn’t want to work with Jahnvi Kapoor or Sara Ali Khan in the future, he said that of course he wanted to work with them, as they are established actors. He added that everyone ‘gets the chance’.
As nepotism has been a raging debate since 2016, Darsheel said that there was no harm if influence is used–he mentions that is used everywhere in the world. “Tomorrow if I have a kid and I can make his or her life easier, I would do it,” he said, adding that he hasn’t faced any kind of discrimination and also considers himself lucky for not having any baggage on him as he doesn’t come from a film family. “It gives you the liberty and scope to retain your own original style. You can even take a step back and introspect,” he said.

Darsheel said that after TZP, there was such a flood of offers that he felt overwhelmed. He said that it became ‘difficult’ to take stock of the situation, and they had to go slow and steady. He also opened up about the work that he has been doing, which includes a web show, a Gujarati film with Ratna Pathak Shah and Manasi Parekh.