Actor Vishal Jethwa, who made his debut at the 78th Cannes Film Festival with the premiere of his film Homebound, which stars Ishaan Khatter and Janhvi Kapoor and was screened in the Un Certain Regard section, spoke about his early life struggles and said he could relate to his character in Homebound, as he comes from a poor family.
In a conversation with Zoom, Vishal shared, "I also come from a poor family. I was so confident at Cannes because my sister told me, 'Don't be so stressed,' because in a literal way, I am the son of a domestic help. Main ek kaamwali bai jo hoti hain, unka beta hoon. Meri mumma ne logon ke ghar pe jhaadu pochha kiya hai, she used to sell sanitary pads in a supermarket. My father used to sell coconut water. I have seen all of this. And I could relate all this to it. But not now, now my life has moved beyond that. But privilege is such a big thing — I never knew that."
The actor also revealed that he was initially scared about his Cannes debut and felt extremely nervous, as he believed he had a weakness when it came to speaking English. He was completely unfamiliar with the environment, and everyone attending the film festival seemed experienced. Vishal stated that he was scared about how he would present himself in front of everyone. He revealed that the pressure of going to Cannes made him feel so low that he even considered backing out.
He added, "I wasn’t worried about what I might lose. I had made up my mind. But after talking to a few people who counselled me, I automatically gained a lot of confidence. Once I reached there, there was this energy that was driving me. I was wearing my confidence before I wore my attire, and that was the most important thing. That’s why, when I got there, I was enjoying myself, I was living the moment… because I had nothing to lose."
Homebound is also produced by Adar Poonawalla, Apoorva Mehta, and Somen Mishra, with co-producers Marijke de Souza and Melita Toscan du Plantier.
