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3 min readNew DelhiMay 10, 2026 05:30 PM IST
Kiara Advani recalls struggle after first film Fugly.
Kiara Advani recently reflected on her early struggles in the film industry, particularly the challenging phase following her debut film, Fugly. She also opened up about how she landed the opportunity to star in Lust Stories on Netflix.
During a candid podcast with Raj Shamani, Kiara shared that every low phase in her career has served as a learning experience for her. “I really feel like there is something that I’ve learnt from every single experience and it has shaped me today. It’s the lows that have been my biggest teachers. Till date, people think that MS Dhoni or Kabir Singh was my first film, because those were the commercial hits. Fugly was my first film, not many people saw it, many people might google it now,” the actor said.
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She further added, “After that film (Fugly), there was a big lull because the film didn’t open well. However, critically, several critics praised my performance. But, nothing translated into work. So, it was the same waiting game of going to auditions, some making it, some not. Lots of your choices are also limited. When you are starting off and don’t deliver commercially, the opportunities coming your way are much less. The process is longer. Till date, I feel that was the best thing that happened to me.”
Even after finding success with MS Dhoni: The Untold Story, Kiara admitted that the struggle continued. “Even after Dhoni, it was the same story. Kabir Singh released in 2019 and then there was no looking back. Those 5 years had a lot of auditions, waiting, rejections and a few films that I was shooting for. I knew work would bring work, and that actually happened. That’s the age when you are so driven, about giving your best,” she said.
Kiara then revealed doing a film Machine (2016), directed by Abbas Mastan. “It was heavily trolled on social media. I am very grateful for that wonderful experience on set, which helped me learn a lot. It was a commercial film. I did a song in that film ‘Tu Cheez Badi Hai Mast Mast’, and that’s when Manish Malhotra noticed me. He didn’t know me at all, and he went and told Karan Johar, because he thought ‘Iss ladki mein namak hai.’ That’s when I was offered Lust Stories,” she recalled.
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Kiara Advani recently returned to work after welcoming her first child with Sidharth Malhotra. The actor will next be seen in Toxic: A Fairy Tale for Grown-ups, opposite Yash.
English (US) ·