'No one minds all actors are pushing 50' - Page 3

"I am more mature, happy and philosophical now" - Kareena

Kareena Kapoor is a power packed combination in the Hindi film industry. A top star who is also one of the most gifted actors of her generation. While she has had her share of critical acclaim in films like Omkara and Chameli, her definitive performance was in 2007 hit, Jab We Met. Post that, Kareena's career has been a mix of the occasional blockbuster like Bodyguard and roles like Heroine and Ek Main Aur Ek Tu.

Last year in October, she married film star Saif Ali Khan, making it one of the most high profile marriages in Bollywood. Below is the edited transcript of Kareena's interview to The A List.

Q: You have lost weight again, you are back to size zero. What's going on?

A: I am shooting a movie with Imran Khan in Bangalore and he is quite tiny. I tell him all the time that he needs to put on some muscle and bulk up like all the older heroes. However, I think that is his charm, so I have to be on my toes all the time. I was on a holiday in Switzerland and now I am back to work and back to life, which is a boring routine of work and yoga.

Q: I had met you much before the release of Refugee. I had come to the sets where Karisma was shooting a film and I had come to ask her for an interview and looking at you I thought this is a person who has the aura of being a star, this is a person who is going to be a star, enjoys being a star and is totally unabashed about being a star.

A: My personality speaks that, but in my mind I have never been a star. Those people who know me know that personally, I am a girl who is so basic that it could get slightly boring. I am a fun girl but I am so basic with the way I eat, the kind of clothes I wear at home, it is the most basic. I think it is my look that people mistake for the fact that she looks like a star and she loves being it. However, I love acting, I love being an actor and in that I am very energetic and I love being on screen.

Q: I remember I had met you about four-five years back and you had said that it does not matter if you do not see your face in Bombay Times one day. So, how do you keep grounded? Is it because you are from a film family and therefore you know that these things can be very transient?

A: Ofcourse. That is definitely the case, but I have also matured over the years. I have come to terms with so many things in life, positive or negative. I have understood that being a star does not just mean doing glamorous roles, having perfectly blow-dried hair and going to events. There is a lot that you have to deal with to actually be like a big star.

Every night I thank my lord for whatever I have got but I also know that I have done it all by myself. And irrespective of whether it they are wrong decisions or right decisions, they are all mine. So, at the end of the day, I do not have anyone to blame but myself and that is a good feeling to have and that keeps you grounded.

Over the years I feel I have matured. I have become more stable, happy and a little philosophical of course. A lot has to do with my profession and life but a lot has to do with definitely meeting Saif and understanding that there's a lot more to life than just the movie business.

Q: He is one of the few actors who have a perspective on things outside the industry. I know the few times I have met him, it's not just the industry and it's not just the industry gossip.

A: He does not know any industry gossip. If he has to meet a particular actor or an actress at a party, he might say 'Hello' but then he looks at me and his next question is, 'who is that? He does not know anyone in today's time.

We do not watch too many movies at home. In the last five years, that is what changed me because I think he has given me and opened an entire door full of goodies, which has so many things in it. It has books, travel, politics and all different kind of takes. He has a take on everything and he is worldly wise.

Source: The A List