MUMBAI: Anu Aggarwal will always be the original Aashiqui girl. The actress made her debut with the Mahesh Bhatt directorial and went on to become an overnight sensation before she met with an accident in 1999 that changed her life forever. Anu bid an untimely adieu to showbiz and took up the path of yoga and therapy to help her heal. She now explains how she was made to feel like an outsider.

When asked if she ever felt like an outsider during her initial days in the industry, she said, "Always. The thing is I don't know what to say. The aftermath of success is something that I had to deal with. Logon ki jealousy, woh ill treat karna shuru kar dete hai. I was stuck with the aftermath of that." She added that she did not even have the time to cherish her success. "I could hardly ever become arrogant, I was wondering how do I handle people."

She also revealed an incident that left her feeling extremely heartbroken. "I will give an example. I did a film called Khalnaikaa. It came in the third year after my debut film Aashiqui. It was so well received that the likes of Amitabh Bachchan walked up to me at a party and said, 'Wow, how did you manage? Within 3 years, Aashiqui to Khalnaikaa, how is it possible?' I heard him and I was like 'Oh, yes, even I never thought of it so much. Kaise ho gaya yeh?' People really liked the movie a lot." She further went on to narrate how she was snubbed by a particular award show. While she never wanted the black lady, Anu revealed the fact that she was moved from the lead category to the supporting category is what made her sad. 

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"I got nominated as well. Later, someone told me that at one award show, the jury saw my name and asked 'yeh kaun hai, iske maa baap kaun hai, pata nahi kahan ki ladki hai' and they removed my name from the lead actor category and put me in supporting actor category. I was not a supporting actress in it. I just went home and cried at night. I did not tell anyone. I wondered where am I? Koi value nahi karta. What is the reason behind it? Is it jealousy?"

The actress then revealed that such instances made her feel like a complete outcast and it wasn't easy! "For somebody who is from outside the industry, that is why I relate to Sushant, you are treated as an outcast. With me, I did not have anyone to stand by me and the guy who wanted to stand with me wanted something from me which I didn't want. I understood at a very young age that you cannot take favour because then they will want something in return."

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Credits: Pinkvilla