Akansha Ranjan Kapoor Reveals Her Life Went Kaput After Guilty: 'Ended Up Sitting At Home For 8 Months'

Akansha Ranjan Kapoor made a striking debut with Netflix’s Guilty in March 2020, stepping into the spotlight with a bold, performance-driven role. The film was lauded for its female-centric narrative, and many expected to see her quickly rise as a prominent face in the industry. However, post-Guilty, Akansha’s appearances on screen remained limited, a decision that sparked curiosity among fans and followers.

In an exclusive conversation with The Free Press Journal, Akansha opened up about her unexpected hiatus from showbiz and the personal journey that followed her debut.

“Guilty released on March 6, 2020, and just nine days later, the country went into lockdown,” she shared. “My whole life, which had molded itself around that one big moment, went kaput. I ended up sitting at home for the next eight months.”

While the buzz around her performance was significant, the pandemic brought all opportunities to a standstill. “During those initial days, I was getting calls for meetings, new projects, and even another film with the same production house. But suddenly, everything went silent. It took me a year to recover from that,” Akansha revealed.

She added that her selective approach to work only came later. “Initially, it wasn’t about being selective, it was just about waiting. It wasn’t a choice, it was COVID. But eventually, after losing a year and a half, I told myself that whatever I do next needs to take me a step forward. I didn’t want to be one of 18 people in a frame or just dance around. I want to do something that makes an impact.”

Her projects, 'Ray' & 'Monica, O My Darling', happened next - thanks to filmmaker Vasan Bala, who appreciated her work in Guilty. Since then, Akansha has been consciously choosing roles that challenge her and align with her creative aspirations. “I guess that role in Guilty spoiled me in the best way. It made me realise that if something touches your heart, it can touch others too. So now, I only want to do work that really feels right.”

Reflecting on the internal struggle of being overly self-critical, she also spoke candidly about the challenges of watching herself on screen.

“I’ll send a voice note and immediately think, ‘I can’t stand my own voice.’ I obsess over the smallest things, like why my hand was positioned a certain way in a scene. My sister tells me, ‘No one will notice,’ but I just can’t let it go. This is the pain of being in front of the camera. It’s the nature of the medium. But I wouldn’t have it any other way. I just hope to find a better balance and not be so harsh on myself.”

On the work front, Akansha was most recently seen opposite Amol Parashar in the Amazon Prime Video show Gram Chikitsalay.

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