‘I was ready to leave the Industry’: Yami Gautam on her career turning point

For many actors, a hit debut is expected to open doors. But for Yami Gautam, the years after ‘Vicky Donor’ were anything but easy. The actor has now revealed that she had almost given up on Bollywood before ‘Uri: The Surgical Strike’ changed her career.

Speaking to Filmfare, Yami admitted that she had reached a point where she was ready to leave acting behind and return to her hometown in Himachal Pradesh.

She said that despite the success of her 2012 debut, she struggled to find meaningful roles because many viewed her entry into the industry as "unconventional" and felt she had not been launched as a "typical heroine."

Recalling that difficult phase, Yami said, “Just before  Uri and Bala, I had made peace with leaving the industry altogether. I thought I'd return to Himachal. We have farmland there. I imagined beginning a completely different life. My parents were incredibly supportive. They simply said, ‘Come home.’ And strangely, the moment I stopped clinging to the industry out of fear, everything changed.”

That turning point came in 2019 when ‘Uri: The Surgical Strike’, directed by her now-husband Aditya Dhar, and ‘Bala’, starring Ayushmann Khurrana, released in the same year. Both films turned out to be major commercial successes and marked a new chapter in her career.

Yami also spoke candidly about working in the industry as an outsider. She said the biggest challenge was having to constantly prove herself while watching others receive repeated opportunities simply because they were already part of the industry ecosystem.

The actor admitted that favouritism often left her "hurt." She recalled how discussions about potential projects would sometimes stop without any explanation, with opportunities quietly slipping away.

However, Yami believes the industry is changing. According to her, audiences today are less interested in where an actor comes from and more focused on talent, good performances and films they can trust, something she says gives her hope for the next generation of actors.