Kin of actors from non-star families joining their famous relatives in B-Town

Not all of them have it easy It isnrsquot if you donrsquot have a pedigree to boast of or a godfather to pull the strings in the ruthless world of Bollywood where fortunes fluctuate in the blink of an eyeLRPriyanka Chopra Parineeti Chopra Meera Chopra and Barbie Handa are part of a flourishing clan in BollywoodWhile those with the lsquorightrsquo surname often skip the queue in their filmi pursuit others have to struggle to carve a niche And when they get a foothold it not only puts them on the radar of topnotch filmmakers but also inspires many ordinary men and women to try their luck in showbiz More than that their status becomes a default career choice for their siblings and relatives who know the worth of the remotest family connection in a competitive industryNawazuddin Siddiquis brother Shamas is gearing up for his directorial debutMove over the Kapoors and Khans mdash the legendary dynasties of BTown An influx of actor siblings from nonstar backgrounds in the last couple of years is setting the stage for brand new Bollywood khaandaans A flourishing filmi clan seems to be that of Priyanka Choprarsquos with cousins Parineeti and Meera part of the industry today One more from the sorority Barbie Handa will make her acting debut soonAparshakti an experienced RJ and Ayushmann Khurranarsquos younger brother has been signed for two filmsldquoThe Chopra girls have arrivedrdquo gushes Meera Chopra who recently starred in Gang of Ghosts ldquoWe belong to a traditional middleclass family where acting was never considered a serious career No one had ever imagined that four cousins would become actressesrdquo says the starlet who worked in Tamil and Telugu films for four years before stepping into Bollywood last yearSiblings Huma Qureshi and Saqib Saleem made their acting debut around the same timeThe Chopra connection gave Meera many a privilege ldquoThe industry welcomed me with open arms because of Priyankarsquos reputation I never had to wait for a director to meet me In fact I was given special treatment when people discovered that I was related to an Alister That cut down my struggle period to a great extent But there have been so many times when I did not get a role because the makers genuinely thought that I was not suitable for itrdquo she addsAnubhuti Kashyap has followed in the footsteps of her brothers Abhinav and Anurag KashyapParineeti who took to acting by accident has always acknowledged PeeCeersquos support ldquoI came here to work as an investment banker and Mimi didi Priyanka helped me with contacts That is how I landed up in Yash Raj Films as a publicist She was a major reason why I chose to work in Mumbai instead of Delhi Initially I used to stay with her But like all Punjabans I love my independence I moved out the day I found work But the decision to become an actress was entirely my callrdquo the Ambala girl had said earlierKarnesh Sharma who serves in the Merchant Navy is collaborating with his actress sister Anushka for her maiden production NH10Another accidental actor is Saqib Saleem who was inspired by his sister Huma Qureshi to dabble in histrionics ldquoI used to pick her up from her theatre rehearsals and thought Huma is the trained actor while I am the more filmi onerdquo says SaqibSoon after Huma moved to Mumbai from her hometown Delhi to pursue a career in acting Saqib followed suit However it was the latterrsquos film that hit the theatres first ldquoWe joke about the fact that I am her senior in the industry But it is good to have your sister in the same field We are each otherrsquos guiding force and had decided very early in our careers that we need to tell one another where we are going wrong more than what we are doing rightrdquo he addsPaving the wayThe sibling advantage also worked for Shamas Nawab Siddiqui whose elder brother Nawazuddin Siddiqui shot to fame after wandering about for work for almost five years doing blinkandmiss roles until Black Friday 2004 came his way During his struggle he asked Shamas 10 years his junior to come to Mumbai from Delhi where he was pursuing a degree in aeronautical engineeringldquoIn those difficult times he wanted some family presence around Butthe idea behind calling me was that he knew I had a creative mind He had also seen some of my scripts earlier So I ditched my practical classes and came to Mumbai Whenever he signed a film he would put in a word for me and I would be taken on board as an assistant director But in those days none took me seriously since Nawaz bhai was merely a strugglerrdquo he recallsGradually Shamas learnt the tricks of the trade and with hard work moved ahead without his brothers help ldquoThen I shifted to the small screen Meanwhile Nawaz bhai became a household name and things changed for me phenomenally Today everyone gives me royal treatment and takes me seriously because my brother is a starrdquo he saysShamas is quick to clarify that he has not taken undue advantage of his brotherrsquos stardom ldquoWhen I quit TV he persuaded me to write a film script but I wouldnrsquot listen He gave up and perhaps doubted whether I had it in me to take up the challenge So I put on my thinking cap came up with a script in 18 days It was my turn then to pester him to read it It was only two months later that he went through it and fortunately loved it This only shows how very professional he is He will never promote anyone if he didnrsquot believe in their abilitiesrdquo he saysAlso flowing with the tide is Anushka Sharma who recently revealed that her brother Karnesh a Merchant Navy officer is involved in her maiden production NH10 Rumours of Karneshrsquos Bollywood entry started floating two years ago when he was regularly spotted with his sister at filmi events However the actress had scotched the speculationsThe flip sideHaving a star sibling has its share of disadvantages too as Anubhuti Kashyap the younger sister of filmmakers Abhinav and Anurag Kashyap recounted ldquoWhen Abhinav stepped into Bollywood and approached people with his scripts nobody was keen to listen to him They knew he was related to Anurag who had earned the reputation of being a director who made only dark films So people didnrsquot think Abhinav had anything new to offer He was dismissed as predictable Having Anurag in the industry never helped him Rather it made life difficult for himrdquo says the former corporate executive who recently announced her entry into BollywoodAnubhuti said she is wary of collaborating with either of her two brothers ldquoI donrsquot want people to say that my brothers are backing me However those who have seen my short film have appreciated my work and are curious to know what I have in store now There is a lot of pressure to deliver as I am one of the Kashyap siblings The good part is that people are openminded about me as both my brothers have made films that fall in completely different genresrdquo she saysThe challenge of coming out of a star siblingrsquos shadow always lurks around However Ayushmann Khurranarsquos younger brother Aparshakti who will feature in Neeraj Pandeyrsquos Saath Uchakey and UTVrsquos Babboo Ki Jawaani is not fretting over it The radio presentercumemcee said ldquoComparisons are bound to come up but therersquos no pressure as I will have my own journey I am excited about joining general entertainment channels as a TV presenter As of now there is a lot of space for a good anchor as the already popular ones are venturing into films I would like to do both TV and films as the lines have blurredrdquo says AparshaktiWith inputs from Asira Tarannum