Prachi Tehlan, aka ‘Arzoo Bahu’ from ‘Diya aur Baati Hum’ is not just an actor who has received immense love for her roles in the televison and film industry but is also a strong sportswoman who has made India proud on various basketball and netball championships. She represented India in the 2010 Commonwealth Games as a team captain for Indian Netball Team and under her captaincy, the Indian team won its first medal at South Asian Beach Games. She is also a brand ambassador for Netball Development Trust India and there is much more to this beautiful personality.
Business Upturn got into an exclusive interview with Prachi on the occasion of Teacher’s Day where she spoke her heart out on her ‘Gurus’, and the way she has adapted to the teachings of her coaches.
Being interested in sports since her schooling days, when asked about a teacher that has made a strong influence on her, Prachi expressed “Not just one, but there are a few names that cross my mind on hearing this question, and those teachers are my coaches who have left a huge impact on me for a lot of reasons.”
She told us in detail about her school coach VP Niroola, who is still a basketball coach at Montfort School, and the Director of Sports, Anju Luthra from Jesus and Mary School, as the two personalities who have shaped her up into a good sports person. She fell short on words while showing gratitude for the encouragement and support that came from them. Prachi further revealed she considers Maqbool Khan to be her Guru. Khan, recently directed ‘Khaali Peeli , a movie staring Ishaan Khatter and Ananya Pandey, which will hit the screens in 2021. Prachi tell us, “He has been an inspiration and a mentor who always supported me and treated me like his own kid. I think my journey till here wouldn’t have been possible without his guidance in my initial 6-7 months in the industry which was a complete new world for me back at that time.”
We asked the actor on that one lesson that she has adapted in her life from her teachers, to which she simply smiled as she mentioned that she has learnt a lot of things from all her coaches and that the list was quite long but one phrase from her school coach that often crosses her mind is, ‘Your home is your body, you stay in it and you have to stay fit and take care of your body ‘, “I stay by this”, Prachi added.
When asked about her school days and that how she was as a student, she quipped, “I was not at all a notorious kid.”
As a student she was quite disciplined, calm and punctual that made her ‘The favourite child of all the teachers’. She continues, “My teachers and coaches till date appreciate my qualities as a student. But yes, I was a little akddu [toffee-nosed] and only did what I wanted, so I used to be scolded a lot, but now those teachers remember me as a kid who has done something exceptionally good in her life”.
Prachi Tehlan has been featured in a couple of films including Arjan, Bailaras but got huge recognition with Malayalam movie Mamangam, in which she shared screen space with superstar Mammootty.
