Gay Friends Supported Me More Than Society”, Anu Aggarwal’s Unapologetic Truth on In The Ring With Filmfare
~Catch Anu Aggarwal in her most authentic, empowering self on ‘In the Ring with Filmfare’, now available to stream on Filmfare’s YouTube Channel ~
Anu Aggarwal, once a household name with the cult classic Aashiqui, shares her extraordinary story of survival, reinvention, and spiritual awakening on In The Ring with Filmfare. In a candid and soul-stirring conversation hosted by Jitesh Pillai, Editor-in-Chief of Filmfare, Anu opens up about the aftermath of her life-changing accident, the quiet power of self-acceptance, and her journey from Bollywood stardom to a life of purpose and healing.
With a grace that defies the typical Bollywood narrative and a voice that champions authenticity, Anu reclaims her story not just as an actress but as a woman who has emerged stronger, more self-aware, and unafraid to live on her own terms. Beyond her iconic role in Aashiqui, she has appeared in films like The Cloud Door, King Uncle, and Return of Jewel Thief, and has also been recognized for her modeling career and global humanitarian efforts.
Anu shared how eagerly she wanted to be a social worker since her childhood. She shared a candid conversation with her brother discussing their ‘future profession’, recalling, “I want to make people happy, my brother said that is not a profession, I want to be a Chartered Accountant. But I thought for a while, and again I said I want to make people happy, and surround me. I want to make the world a better place; I want to see smiling faces around me. My life has been extremely transformative. “
She shared her inspiration, which provoked her to work for society, “There have been several big transformations in my life. When I went to see a movie with my father, that is the first time I realized that people from the slum could not afford the film ticket. The tickets were so expensive for them. How much little money they have, but how much passion they have. Buying hundred, hundred-rupee ticket for them is a big struggle. They don’t even have tea and sugar in their home. I was like oh my god! I want to spend money on sorting that out. I started feeling guilty. My entire aim was to do meaningful cinema.”
Talking about her journey in the world of cinema, she shared, “I realize that the real love of my life is me, I love myself more than I love anybody else. If anybody says they don’t love themselves, they are an idiot. I see my boyfriends as game changers, not boyfriends. Every relationship in my life took me so much forward, they made me understand so many things. A French man is different from a German; the whole culture are different.”
Talking about her stardom, she also expressed, “Becoming a star is bit strange, It is very hard to understand what the entire life is. People who really stood by my side were my gay friends. Even before I started modelling, when I refused the offers, these were the guys who used to write drafts for me. It was the gay people. The kind of support I got and the acceptance I got from them I did not get from normal society.”
Anu also discussed her life’s ups and downs, handling the criticism and her strong support system, saying, “I must say that in my tough situation, my gay friends stood by me. that I am not gay. I am not from that community, for me to talk about it is not like that, as I have not gone through the problems they go through. They have been close enough to recount the problems, and it is been horrifying for me to see the problems and the kind of non-acceptance they live through. They are my biggest inspiration. Look at them, they are facing rejection everywhere.”
Recounting a memory from early film shoots, she reflects on the male-dominated ways of the film sets from that time, “I hardly interacted with Hrithik (Roshan) on the sets of Khal-Naaikaa, he was a shy, little thin boy at that time. There were 200 men on set, except me, all were men. Only my hairdresser was a woman on all sets, even on Mani Ratnam’s Thiruda Thiruda set.”
Watch the full episode of In The Ring With Filmfare ft. Anu Aggarwal is now only on Filmfare’s YouTube Cha