Heli Daruwala made her entry into the world of cinema via a chapter on Sanjay Leela Bhansali. The actress was mesmerized by his lavish storytelling and spectacle, particularly in Devdas, after which she set out to achieve great things in front of the camera. The actress has worked in television and OTT projects, and besides this, Daruwala is also known for her successful restaurant business in Mumbai. For the uninitiated, she is also a dentist. In a recent exclusive chat with Entreprenuer India, Heli defines her career as a combination of artistic world with rigorous academic discipline.

Speaking about the early days of her career, Heli says that she always wanted to do something in the medical field, and along with it, she also explored theatre, dance, and performance. As she recalls, “In school, I never wanted to go out, so I had many creative interests because I always performed. I started very early, I was in senior KG when I first acted. I was always very interested in performance, but at the same time, I was also very interested in science, biology, the human body. I was a very good student. I always knew that I was going to do something in the medical field, and then my creative passion… if that works out for me, it would be great. And it just worked out for me.”

Heli’s career is filled with her wearing multiple hats as she is a doctor who’s a well-known actor and has eventually turned an entrepreneur. Speaking about balancing multiple roles in life, she tells us, “I think I’ve been blessed with the right team. Of course, I am first an actor, and I have been pursuing acting and dance creatively. But being an actor sometimes gives you a lot of time, and the thing is, I can’t sit at home. My brain works in different directions. Since childhood, I’ve been like that, wanting to do multiple things. And I had the right team, the right partner. 1BHK was something we didn’t know would work or not because it was our first time doing a business venture. But I managed it along with the medical part of my life. I try to balance it out.”

1BHK has now become a well-known restaurant in Mumbai. Heli calls it a hub, not just for the locals but among celebrities, directors, writers, and producers. She mentions that the idea for the café came from her travels. “I was travelling with my friends long back to Italy, and my family lives in the US, so we keep going to nice cafés for coffee. We started 1BHK seven years ago, at a time when not many places like this existed here. I wanted to start something where I would love to go with my friends. It was just a big vision in my head, and then it manifested. We got the right kind of space. The menu also has a living, health-conscious touch, a balance of good food and healthy options.”

Starting a restaurant, naturally, came with uncertainty. But Heli credits her friend for guiding them through the operational complexities. “One of my team members already has a lot of restaurants. He was one of the main partners who helped us get things done. That was a big blessing.”

When asked about getting help through her actor friends from the industry to promote her restaurant, Daruwala says, “It became very popular because of all the support. We didn’t have anything written down. We just asked our actor friends, and everybody went all out. They were so nice. That was a big advantage of us being in the industry and having so many people around.”

At the heart of 1BHK is a strong team and uncompromising values. “We never want to compromise on food or customer service. Teamwork is very important. Our chef, Mithlesh, is really good, he keeps reinventing the menu. It’s not just for fitness freaks; you can go with your family too. It’s an overall menu where everyone finds something for themselves. And we’ve been blessed to have the same people around for so many years, so it’s everybody together.”

Beyond F&B, Heli also wants to make sure that her digital presence through dance, beauty, and lifestyle content on YouTube plays an important role. She believes digital visibility is essential today. “This presence is very important. Everybody has shifted digitally, whether you’re an actor or even if you’re running a café. It’s overall branding now. People can just go and see your personality, then decide if they resonate with you.”

Looking ahead, Heli sees herself branching deeper into wellness, a natural extension of her medical roots. “Because I have been a medical student, wellness is a very important part of my life. I have a set of doctor friends, especially in aesthetics and wellness. It’s the need of the hour, and people are getting more educated about it in India. It’s something I want to do.”

Her acting career, too, has influenced her entrepreneurial approach. “I only started as an actor, so I wasn’t fully understanding the business side. When you work on television, it’s like a salary income. But I wasn’t understanding production. When I started working, I understood how production works, and that’s when my interest in business grew. I come from a business family, but I didn’t grow up around that environment because I shifted to Bombay long back. Still, it was always in me.”

For young professionals navigating multiple passions, Heli encourages embracing change. “I don’t think now there’s any need to stick to just one thing. Times have changed. People are doing multiple things. If you have passion for more than one thing, you should explore it. Balance it out. See what works for you and what might not. It’s all about taking risks. And digitally, people can launch their own brands now. Everything has changed. It’s about creating your own brand.”

On the work front, Heli is known for her roles in Television shows like Naagin 3, Nisha Aur Uske Cousins, Yeh Rishtey Hain Pyaar Ke, and Dastaan-E-Mohabbat: Salim Anarkali. She made her Bollywood debut in 2007 with the film titled Dum Kaata, directed by Amol Palekar. Her recent project was a recently released film titled Ek Chatur Naar.