‘I got to see Jaipur in a new light’: Actress Aakanksha Singh turns tourist in hometown

Aakanksha Singh, who now lives in Mumbai, went sightseeing on her recent trip to the city


Aakanksha Singh, known for her performance on the TV shows

Na Bole Tum Na Maine Kuch Kaha

season 1 & 2 and

Gulmohar Grand

, recently flew down to her hometown Jaipur, accompanied by her husband Kunal Sain. She recently completed the first schedule of the sports drama, Clap, in Tamil and Telugu, and was relatively free and so, extended her Jaipur trip for three days. “Jaipur is my hometown, so whenever I get some time off from work, I come here. I had some time in hand, so I thought of extending my trip,” she says.

And Aakanksha became a tourist in her own city. “I walked around the old city like a tourist!” she says. “I felt the urge to explore old Jaipur and visit

Hawa Mahal

and Albert Hall Museum. I have been to the walled city earlier as well, but it was long ago. Ever since I shifted to Mumbai, my trip to Jaipur is only limited to my house and nearby localities. I was surprised to see that so many new things and cafes that have come up.”

Aakanksha's date with Hawa Mahal

“It was such a great experience, which once again made me realise how beautiful Jaipur is. I got to see my city in a new light,” Aakanksha adds.

After making her Bollywood debut with

Badrinath Ki Dulhania

where she played Alia Bhatt’s flatmate in Singapore and fellow air hostess, Aakanksha headed down south. She did two Telugu films,

Malli Raava

and Devadas, and a yet-to-be-released Kannada film, Pailwaan.

Aakanksha was accompanied by her husband Kunal Sain on her trip

Aakanksha is enjoying her stint in the south film industry, but says that it all happened by chance. “My show, Na Bole Tum Na Maine Kuch Kaha, was dubbed in Telugu and Tamil, and I had no idea about it. One of the casting directors (from south films) saw me and asked me if I was interested in doing a south film. I gave it a shot and there has been no looking back since then. As long as I am getting good roles, language doesn’t matter,” she says.

But the actress has not stopped auditioning for Bollywood films. “Honestly, it is very hard to get into Bollywood. After Badrinath Ki Dulhania, I was hoping that I would get a chance to work in more Hindi films, but nothing of that sort happened. Then I got an opportunity to work in south Indian cinema and my destiny took me there. I am extremely happy because I am getting meaty roles. I get my scripts (with translations in English attached) one month in advance so that I can memorise my dialogues. Having said that, I am also giving look tests for Bollywood films. Let’s see what the future has in store for me,” she says.

And what about television? “I am waiting to return to television, but I don’t want to do the typical saas-bahu soaps. It has to be something meaningful,” she says.