Ridhima was born in the city of opportunities – Mumbai on 25th June 1990. Her father was into construction business and mother a homemaker.
Journey begins
She always aspired to become a model and did many projects for renowned brands like Sunsilk, Fair & Lovely, Dove, Harpic, Center Fresh, Veet, Luminous, Set Wet and many more.
The leap
Though here dreams were to make a name in the modeling field she was a bit apprehensive as no one from her family every ventured into showbiz. Her parents loved movies and were aware of the happenings in this field. Ridhima’s friend happened to win the Ms. India pageant and bag the runners up title for Miss World contest. Ridhima’s parents were very appreciative of this friend and Ridhima too caught on with the flow and took the plunge with focus on modelling and acting. Her parents were supportive and she intends to make her parents proud by way of making a good name for herself in this space.
Improving skill sets & trying more around
In order to hone her skills further, Ridhima did a theater workshop and joined a theater group for around a year and a half. She attended the Hindi theater workshops with Nagraj Babbarji. She had the privilege to play the lead role in one and a character role in another. Theater, as we all know is low in terms of remuneration but great for a hobby. Ridhima was young and income was very important to her. She tried her hand at event management but could not sustain for long because of the long working hours and not being left with personal time, she realized is not workable. She then tried artist management and enjoyed the work and also got opportunities to travel the world with her clients. She worked for Sonu Sood, Ravina Tandon and few other big names. Though she enjoyed it, her dreams were always to be in front of the camera not behind. Her good looks we certainly an advantage for Ridhima.
Luck strikes unawares
Ridhima, began with auditioning for ads and movie roles. A field where rejections pile up and selection comes out of the blue. One such day she got a call for audition and though she was skeptical she went ahead and gave the audition. She was selected for her first advt in 2013 and her hoardings were all over the city. An enthralling moment indeed for her. With that her confidence too got a boost.
Juggling jobs and schedules
Her job as an artist manager from 9-7 then auditions and advt shoots. Payments were great but Ridhima did not want to risk quitting her job totally. On the advice of seniors, she took the next plunge into acting hoping it works well for her.
Palette of work
She did more than 100 TV commercials and then she switched to TV shows. TV shows required shooting back-to-back and that made her a bit nervous. Will she be able to do it, was her concern? She then she got a call for “Bahu Hamari Rajnikant” and one more saas bahu serial. She went for both the auditions. While one was a serious role the second was a fun role. She finally got the role in 2016-17 which changed her path positively. She is known for her comic timings. She next tried romance and drama by ways of series of “Haiwan- the monster” her wish was fulfilled as it is right mix of action, drama and romance. Since she is fond of action, she participated in “khatronke khiladi-9” (2019) and she was 2nd runner up. Ridhima also got the opportunity to do “Khatra Khatra Khatra” with Bharti Singh and Harsh Limbachiya. She had done “Drama Company” in 2017. She hosted a dance show called “Dance Champions” with Raghav Juyal in 2017. A wide exposure and networking with good names gave her a boost in her career.
The new platform of web series has tremendous opportunities for actors like Ridhima. She has done two web series, one with VOOT named “Yokehua Bro”, and the other one was for ALT Balaji named “Hum” where she played a lead role of Devina Kapoor.
Way forward
Every actor/actress eventually wishes to work in movies so, was Ridhima’s dreams. She also feels TV viewers are more loyal and her connect with them stronger, so she sees herself associated with this medium for a long time.
Role models
Her role models in life are her mother and sister, who have faced many challenges personally and still managed to strike a perfect balance.
Inspiration from senior actors
Ridhima’s favorite actor/actress list is quite long. She has favorites in Hollywood and Bollywood. Meryl Streep for her absolutely woman next door attitude and acting and at home she loves Madhuri Dixit, Deepika Padukone and Alia Bhatt, Kareena Kapoor, Karishma Kapoor etc. in male actors she likes Hrithik Roshan, Shahrukh Khan, Salman Khan, etc.
Challenges ofShowbiz as a career
Showbiz is a field where work comes at intervals. At times loads of work and no dates and at times no work and lots of time. It can be frustrating unless handled practically and sensibly. Whether you have work or no, one has to make their presence felt by regularly being seen and networking.
Awards & Accolades
An average student in school, Ridhima was active in competitions etc. but did not win any great prizes. So today when she is a winner for awards like Zee Gold Awards for debutante role in “Bahu Haari Rajnikant” she feels truly honored. In the future she would like to work with good directors and great superstars like Shahrukh Khan and Amitabh Bachchan.
Showbiz her only calling
Showbiz for Ridhima is her calling and she cannot think of any other career she could have fit into. If not acting she certainly would have done something in the beauty industry or travel industry. However, acting is and always will be her first love.
Her family is very supportive and appreciative of her work. Her father used to indulge in theatre for a while and she feels she got the acting bug from her father genetically. Mimicry too is something she loves as she observes people minutely.
The chances of getting typecast is very easy and its important to do different kind of roles so that one does not end up getting typecast. An actor needs to do multiple variety of roles to show the world the skills they have within them. Ridhima hopes to do roles across different genres.
Stars are made by fans!
Ridhima loves her family, friends and fans and she truly believes stars are made by their fans and well-wishers.
Hobbies and travel
Besides acting Ridhima loves singing, music, travelling and reading. She looks forward to making a solo trip some day soon. Dubai is one of her favorites and she wishes to travel to Greece to explore the land of pyramids.
Philosophy that always works!
Ridhima feels it important to follow your dreams and not bothering about what society will say. As long as you are honest and believe that you are doing right – nothing can stop you from achieving your goal . Stay focused and ensure you work towards the target at all times.
