Quotes of All Topics . Occasions . Authors
I do not want to be a part of Hindi cinema's rat race. But yes, if I get offers and characters which I feel would suit me as well as make some difference to me, I will do a Hindi film.
'Amma Nanna O Tamila Ammayi' has a very nice subject which I think could be remade into a Hindi film. It was my first film in Telugu for which I got Filmfare Award for the best actress.
I have done 33 films in one year, for which I hold a Guinness Book World record. Plus I've done songs for all languages from Hindi to Malayalam, Punjabi to Telugu, and Kannada to Oriya.
Somehow I feel South Indian actors are not that well known in the Hindi belt. Tamil and Telugu actors have an upper hand. But Kannada and Kerala are totally sidelined by Hindi filmgoers.
I have translated Bengali poets such as Subhash Mukhopadhyay and Sunil Gangopadhyay before. These were published by Hindi and Urdu magazines. But to take on Tagore's work is no easy task.
I've had the fortune of working with a large Malayali crew in Priyadarshan's 'Bumm Bumm Bole' and Ajay Verma's 'SRK,' which is a Hindi remake of Sreenivasan's 'Chinthavishtayaya Shyamala.'
I would never put on 20 kilos and mess up my system because a role demands it. Hindi cinema doesn't offer you roles that get you an Oscar, anyway. Tom Hanks can do it in Hollywood; not us.
While I am fluent in Hindi, I was a little worried about my accent. So when I was approached for 'Karwaan,' I told them they need to first listen to me speak in Hindi, in case it sounds off.
English is my first language, but when I started shooting for 'Definition of Fear,' I actually had trouble with my lines! It was so weird, because I never have trouble with my lines in Hindi!
I am keen on doing the regular Hindi film, but I want strong, meaningful roles in my repertoire, which I get down South. I can devote equal time and attention to both, so I don't see the clash.
I would love to be a coach, mentor, or a batting consultant. I would love to commentate in Hindi, as most people who watch the game are more comfortable with Hindi in India rather than English.
When a director from Hindi cinema is looking for an actor from another language, it will be only because he feels the character justifies this and that can only be for a well-written character.
When I decided to start a career in the Hindi entertainment industry, I knew I had to put in efforts as I'm not very fluent with the language of Hindi, as I pronounce certain words differently.
Initially, I did South Indian films because I needed the money; I had a huge student loan that I had to pay off. But I do feel that Marathi, English, and Hindi are what I'm more comfortable with.
Instead of saying 'unique,' I will say 'Kattappava Kaanom' is a very special and lucky film for me because I got the chance to step into Hindi film industry when I was in the shoot of this movie.
I will not leave my South films for a Hindi film. I want to be sincere to my South film makers and commitments. Only if my dates are not clashing with any of my South films will I do Hindi films.
I am very much a product of commercial cinema in Tollywood, and people ask me why I don't do masala films in Hindi. I am very eager to do them, but somehow I am perceived as a serious actress here.
I would love to do better in mainstream Hindi films, but one thing I must say is that my best experience so far has been in the Punjabi film industry, where I've been around for more than 11 years.
Industries only vary in scale and not in content, so I was never star-struck about Bollywood. However, I am fortunate to make it to Hindi because several people aspire to be a part of this industry.
I take pride in saying that I'm not the usual Hindi film actor who's on the top of her game for 4-5 years, then sees a slump, gets married, has kids and then makes a comeback in senior kind of roles.
I am the same person who came to this city Mumbai a few years ago to act in Hindi films, and I am just continuing doing that. I did not change as a person. All that happens is people change around me.
I so wish my dad was alive to see me do a Hindi film after acting in six Telugu movies. I sometimes imagine him giving me feedback on my work. But I derive strength from knowing he is watching over me.
In the early days, some producers and directors saw me in the musical 'Evita' and cast me in their movies. They heard me singing on stage also, but they couldn't translate that into a Hindi movie song.
Often I would get offers to remake films and that didn't interest me. I have no interest in remaking a film in Hindi which has been made in the south already. I prefer adapting from a book than a movie.
I grew up idolising Madhuri Dixit, though I wasn't a Hindi film buff. I had an academic upbringing, and movies were a rarity. I looked up to Madhuri because I loved dancing, and she's a fantastic dancer.
Having done movies in Malayalam, Telugu, Tamil, and Hindi, I have been accepted both in North and down South. I don't believe in divisions. I like to believe that I am working in the Indian film industry.
If you're talking about industry, I've never restricted myself to Tamil, Malayalam, Hindi, or Kannada. Whichever the language is, from Swahili to Marathi or Bhojpuri to Bengali, I would be happy to do it.
For a woman who didn't want to be an actress, who is too tall, lanky, shy, and who didn't fit into a Hindi conventional heroine, I am overwhelmed that my audiences have accepted me in India and the world.
I had the Forrest Gump' DVD and started watching. While watching it, I had no intention of writing it. When I started watching it, I got some flashes that it can be adapted in Hindi. That's how it started.
I'm half Telugu. My mom is Telugu and dad, a Maharashtrian. I was brought up in Gwalior. I was exposed to English, Hindi, and Marathi. I heard my mom speak to her family in Telugu, so I got the hang of it.
Every love story or Hindi film has the same story, but what makes it different is the treatment it's given. Much depends on how it is stylised, how the characters are moulded, and how the story is treated.
I'm not a television anchor for a Hindi channel or a radio jockey. So I may not be able to have a spontaneous conversation in Hindi. I'm a Bollywood actress, and I can certainly speak my dialogue in Hindi.
Just because I take my music international doesn't mean I have to sing in English. I will continue to sing in Punjabi, Hindi, Gujarati, and Tamil. I want to represent my own country through its own languages.
I am going to produce a movie of my own. I am not going to stick to the time-tested formulae of Hindi cinema. I want to make a film for the present generation. So there will be a lot of new faces in the film.
Hindi film songs lack poetry, and even musically, they aren't appealing at times. Their lyrical qualities aren't strong. I sometimes feel that singers aren't singing, but shouting out loud. Where's the melody?
Even in India the Hindi film industry might be the best known but there are movies made in other regional languages in India, be it Tamil or Bengali. Those experiences too are different from the ones in Bombay.
It was the '70s when mediocrity came in Hindi films. That's when the actor called Rajesh Khanna joined the industry. For all his success, I think Mr. Khanna was a very limited actor. In fact, he was a poor actor.
Only three or four thrillers are made in Hindi cinema in a year. There is a fascination for crime genre but producers think thrillers don't have that much of a market or will not get picked up for satellite rights.
During the making of 'Abdullah' I asked the assistant director to teach me Hindi; he taught me to read the script too. He also taught me Urdu. Now I can sign autographs in Hindi, Urdu and can write my name in Tamil.
Generally, we tend to believe that royalty is only for mainstream Hindi commercial cinema music and maybe some popular ghazal singer or pop singer but we never think that classical music is played at so many places.
Loveleen Tandon, the casting director of 'Brick Lane,' understood my capacity and suggested my name to director Sarah Gavron. The film has such universal appeal that given a chance I would like to remake it in Hindi.
Art is collaboration: we are artists all over the world. I believe that people are always going to watch Hindi films... that's never going to die, but I think it's amazing that collaborations like that are happening.
My debut performance was on the railway tracks where I was asked to sing some Hindi songs in front of a mafia gang and around 20,000 more people were present. I sang in fear and danced too and luckily, they liked it.
In childhood, we used to read stories from the Arabian Nights. Why were we so interested when it happened somewhere in Arabia, in a different culture? Until now, we hadn't gone to the Hindi audience with a good story.
When I was little, my dad used to call me 'Bandarella,' because I was a mess - a Bandar is a monkey in Hindi. I was not a girly-girl and would always break something and would be running around and didn't really fit in.
If you've made it big in Bollywood, such as Kareena Kapoor Khan and Katrina Kaif, and then you do an item song, it becomes a 'guest appearance.' That's how it works. Sadly, that's the attitude of our Hindi film industry.
My detractors are only accusing me of blowing up cars. What they have not realised is that my films have the potential to cross language barriers. New avenues have opened for Hindi films, and I'm proud and happy about it.
While acting with Amitabh Bachchan, the legend of Hindi cinema, and superstars like Shah Rukh Khan, Ajay Devgn and Akshay Kumar, I observed how they interpret cinema and make it an experience to cherish for their audiences.
Well, to tell you honestly, I am still waiting for much better roles. And I am slightly surprised that despite seeing the quality and hard work, the Hindi film industry is still not creating projects that I can be a part of.
Now I know Hindi, and I can read and write Hindi, but the problem is that I can't improvise when I am acting because I think in English, so I have to translate my thinking from English to Hindi, and therefore, I speak slowly.