We rely on our partners, but if we're not stable within, we crumble in our relationships, too.

At the end of the day, you are doing the film for the audience.

Eleven years of acting it has been for me, and I still sometimes think I am not cut out for this. I hate the people-pleasing that goes with it, and the stupid politics, but that is with every kind of work and job.

When people ask me to describe my journey in Hindi cinema post-'Barfi!' I actually don't know what to say.

I am being selfish here by saying this, but I believe 'Barfi!' helped me the most. It got me recognition and respect.

My personal life is only my business and the business of the people who are close to me.

Acting is a career where you keep learning with every film you do.

I would say the most difficult part of film-making is dealing with people you are working with and trying to forget the drama that goes behind the scenes.

'Barfi!' was a beautiful film. I'm proud to be associated with it.

I am not from a film family. I don't know much, but I definitely knew that if I want to be a good enough actor, I should be able to do any sort of role.

I love music, I love to sing, but I am terrified of singing in public.

I have been singing since the time I was two. My mom says I would sing Gujarati songs with my grandmother when I was a kid.

As far as clothes are concerned, for the day, wear something chic: a good pair of jeans, crop, and open hair with a bright lip colour. For an evening, a nice pair of high-waisted trousers and a nice blouse looks great.

You may look at us actors and think that, 'Oh my God, they are so pretty, so perfect.' But that's not how it is. It takes two hours to get ready and look like this.

I like watching romantic comedies and animation.

I don't like being called a celebrity. So much so that I find it very uncomfortable looking at myself on the screen.

My mum is a rock star, and I idolise her. She was born in a conservative Muslim family, where the girls were not educated much, and she was required to wear a burkha. She felt repressed but dreamt of driving her own car, walking around in jeans and wearing sunglasses, and she did.

I have a lot of dignity and am my own woman who does not dance to anyone's tunes.

I didn't realise how much I was alienating people. I would constantly refuse to go out when friends would call. At one point, I didn't realise I was at home for a week.

Now I don't look at life where I'd say, 'Oh gosh, my life's over if I don't have films anymore.' My approach is that there's so much more for me to do.

You have one life, and it can't be just about work because you lose out on so many amazing years of your life if you just work, work, and work.

I am not one of those people who want to work 24/7.

I like meeting my friends, being with my family, going for holidays.

It might sound cowardly, but I do agree that if you speak out about the casting couch, it will end your career.

I can't watch Kevin Spacey's show anymore, though I have loved it earlier, because he has been accused of harassment. It disgusts me as a person.

When I was working in south films, I never understood how films were made.

In my first-ever shot, there was a big shell that was dropped on my belly in slow motion. I even asked the director why we are doing it, and he said it would look beautiful... and I wondered, 'Really? But why and how?'

I don't like the way my arms jiggle.

I am very critical about the way I look.

There are days when there's no will to do anything. It's not easy for someone in my profession, because you are always meant to be in the limelight. I can't just not turn up, as I will come across as unprofessional, and people won't work with me anymore.

When I see myself on screen, I am always looking at the bad bits and finding fault in something or the other.

When you are working with likeminded people, then there are no pretences.

When you are working with actors who are secure, who have nothing really to prove, it gets a lot easier working with them.

We actors get a lot of love, but at times, we get double the amount of negativity for no reason whatsoever.

I think marriage and live-in relationships aren't really different. It is just a piece of paper that separates the two.

My basic knowledge about Punjabi comes from films.

There is a glimpse of me that I'd like to keep private. And I believe that is necessary for my kind of sanity. I'd not like the world to know everything about me.

A lot of people say I am very mysterious. It takes a lot to know me.

I'm a fairly mature woman, and I've realised that I'm not going to grow if I keep thinking, 'The other heroine in the film is so much better than me.' I would rather take inspiration from them.

If I'm going to get overshadowed in a film, it's because of something that I haven't done, not because of what the other heroine has done or because I've focused on the amount of scenes she had in the film.

I don't like being jealous.

It would be prudish to say, 'I don't want to be a prop in a film,' because there are certain films I've loved doing, as I have looked very glamorous in them.

I have been parts of some films in the South where I didn't expect certain shots to be shot in a certain way. I wasn't experienced enough; I was very naive. I didn't have the standing of an actor to say that I don't want to do this shot.

I was this very self-conscious, shy person once I hit my teens.

I was always like the wallflower.

I never thought I'd be somebody dealing with anxiety or depression.

Marriage is great for some; it makes them better people. For me, commitment doesn't have to be marriage. It stems from the fact that I have a Westernised world view.

Marriage isn't important for me. It's just a social announcement where we splurge on feeding a lot of people.

I fell in love with films only two years after working in films.

I think what matters is whatever you do on screen should be good irrespective of the time you have on screen.