By Vaani Kapoor: I am not Amitabh Bachchan or Shah Rukh Khan that I should fear being hounded by people when I travel – Times of India
“Look, I’m a Punjabi. And we as people have this innate, constant need to feed ourselves to feel happy. So, I eat like a typical Punjabi who relishes a good meal any given day. I mean, there are people in the world who are forced to eat to put on weight. I wish I had that problem, I’d happily eat (laughs). Here I am, toiling to stay in shape because I love eating. I wish I had great metabolism to support my love for food. Apart from food, I love to travel. For years, I had done that at least once every year up until 2020 when things changed. That’s the best way to explore different cultures in the world. When I travel – for work or otherwise, I usually like sitting at a cafe or something, and observing people. Every place in the world has a different vibe and energy. I am actually quite blessed. Even in the midst of the lockdown, I travelled to Glasgow to shoot, I hadn’t been there before and that was one place off my bucket list. I got to see a new city. Most films of mine have taken me to different locations. Italy, UK, France… If I have the time this year, I will go somewhere. Greece, Iceland and the Himalayas are on my wishlist. I also want to explore Japan. One of my closest friends is from there. Though she has moved to Canada now, I want to plan something with her in her home country. I also want to explore India, deeply.”
As a recognised face, doesn’t she fear travelling inside India? “People are immune to these things,” Vaani says, including, “I won’t go to extremely crowded places. But even if I do, I guess it’s fine, I am not Amitabh Bachchan or Shah Rukh Khan that I should fear being hounded by people. It will be fine. You gotta live it up.” Vaani began travelling when she was nonetheless a toddler. Recalling these days, she says, “We used to travel by car to Jodhpur and to Moradabad where my father had factories. We would do a 12-hour journey to Jodhpur and then to Moradabad. We would also travel to hill stations with our family friends. As kids, my sister and I would be put into the car like luggage and we would be on the road. My sister and I would fight in the car, we’d be at each other’s throats all the time. And even then, we never troubled our mom during the journeys. I loved listening to songs on a loop and it would piss off everyone in the car. The only way to keep both of us quiet was to give us food and to play some good songs. I was this kid, sitting and eating and listening to music and having a swell time. Deep down, my sister and I were like these two cool backpackers from the time we were kids. We loved being on the road… We still do.”
