IS PELVAGE THE NEW EROGENOUS ZONE?
Actor Sara Ali Khan says that she is ‘very proud’ of her lineage; adds nobody treats anyone like a baby in the cut-throat world of Bollywood
It has been just a little over a year since she made her Bollywood debut [with Kedarnath; 2018]. Since then, Sara Ali Khan has been on a roll with back-to-back biggies, spearheaded by top filmmakers, with the latest being Imtiaz Ali’s Love Aaj Kal. And though she is just 24, Saif Ali Khan and Amrita Singh’s daughter can zap you with her extremely mature and bright take on acting, life and her career. “I know who my parents are, and my family is, and I am very proud of that. But in today’s day-and-age, anybody who tries to remind me of that will only try to pressurise me. And I would not like to fall for that so I don’t think about it much. I am proud of being their daughter or granddaughter [her grandmother is Sharmila Tagore] but I have always aspired to and will continue to aspire to make my own identity, and that’s what I am focusing on,” says Sara. Excerpts from an interview:
What are you feeling right now? Are you usually a nervous wreck before a new film’s release? There’s a little bit of nervousness. But I think that’s only because I was probably given a little more love than I deserved very early on in my career. Now, I think, I’m aware of the fact that I need to live up to that [love]. But it’s not pressurising since I don’t take pressure. I feel I’ve reached a stage wherein I want to make myself more and more proud. After Kedarnath, I was given a certain amount of love as well as acceptance, and now, I just want to be able to reiterate to myself and the audiences that I am truly worthy of all of that.
Love Aaj Kal is just your third film. But you seem to have had great fun in a short span…
I think the media likes me so they made me feel welcome very early on in life, and I appreciate that a lot. That’s why I want to keep up the good work. At the same time, our job is also such that we’re constantly learning. Every film, journey, director and character is different. Love Aaj Kal has been a special journey because it’s
Imtiaz sir’s take on today’s love. But Sara and Zoe are not the same. It is sir’s take on a girl like
Zoe which is not me.
So, the only way I’ve understood Zoe has been through Imtiaz sir, and I’m very thankful for that. It’s been a great experience for me and I hope people like what they see.
How would you define this short period as a film star?
I think the media had decided to like me even before Kedarnath released (laughs).
I’ve only got love and acceptance from them. I don’t think I have to make them love me as they have already been very gracious with me. Now, I just hope that I keep making them more and more proud. I look at them like family because they make me who I am. It’s their words, captions, articles and vision that gives me the confidence that I have today. So, now, it’s my turn to make them feel that I deserve their love.
Talking about your new film’s co-star, there have been lot of talks about you and Kartik Aaryan. Are you okay with that?
Whatever talks have happened, or will happen are going to continue, so I don’t really listen and pay heed to any kind of talks. But I don’t think Sara and Kartik were interacting on set because Imtiaz sir’s romance and his world is so overwhelming that it was only Zoe and Veer on set, who got to know each other very well. Every day that we were on set, we discovered ourselves and our characters more even as the chemistry between Zoe and Veer kept growing. It is Imtiaz sir’s vision and we were clear about the execution. Also, sir was clear about what he wanted from the two ‘different’ characters. For me, it was very interesting to see how that chemistry brewed.
It’s not even been two years since you made your debut. Even as you take baby steps in the industry, do you feel at home here?
I don’t think anybody is a baby here, and no one even treats you that way. And that’s fine. You enter [the industry] with full knowledge and awareness that this is a cut-throat world. You know that everybody is very hungry and extremely driven here. No one gets brownie points for being educated, being a star child, being sweet, wearing white salwar-kameez or greeting people with a namaste. It really doesn’t matter. What you do on screen is what ultimately counts.