In interviews, the first question I get in America is always: 'What do you do to stay young?' I do nothing. I don't think aging is a problem. What irritates me a little is growing fatter. It irritates me that if I eat what I want to eat, it shows.

I started modeling at 28. I'm 5-feet-7 1/2, and I never went on a diet. I followed what my doctor told me: 'It's good to have a little bit of fat. Your weight is fine. Don't go any lighter.'

If we are completely honest with ourselves, everyone has a dark side to their personalities.

Women who stay true to themselves are always more interesting and beautiful to me: women like Frida Kahlo, Georgia O'Keeffe and Anna Magnani - women who have style, chic, allure and elegance. They didn't submit to any standard of beauty - they defined it.

True elegance for me is the manifestation of an independent mind.

I was only 18 years old when I started acting.

I always wanted to play a Punjabi girl because I always found them very colourful, in a way. There's always a spark to all the Punjabi girls I've seen onscreen.

I love watching funny films.

At one point, you start wondering if being talented in Bollywood is enough, or you need connections.

I am a massive foodie.

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

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

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

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.

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

I was always like the wallflower.

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

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.

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 don't like being jealous.

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'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.

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

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.