Proud that I’ve no godfather in Bollywood, says Kriti Sanon

By Durga Chakravarty

Panaji, March 17 (IANS) In an industry where star children are lined up for their grand launch into filmdom, actress Kriti Sanon admits her ride in Bollywood would have been easier if she was from a film background, but she is "proud" that she doesn't have a "godfather".

Delhi girl Kriti, daughter of a chartered accountant and an associate professor, spoke to IANS about her journey on the sidelines of the fourth edition of India Beach Fashion Week 2017 here.

Talking about how having some backing helps, she said: "People would have known me much faster... To register a new face, especially when that face doesn't come from a film background and you don't know the surname, it takes a little while for the audience to connect with you."

"I am quite proud of it, of where I've come. I never thought of becoming an actor to where I am right now . I don't have any particular godfather, who is always there and helping me out. But at the same time, I am making my own mistakes and learning through them," she said.

Also, the 26-year-old actress feels "rawness helps as an actor".

"It's good sometimes to not know too much," Kriti said.

The actress has starred in two romantic films "Heropanti" and "Dilwale". As of now, she has two movies -- "Raabta" and "Bareilly Ki Barfi" in her kitty.

Asked if she wants to stick to the romantic genre, Kriti said: "I am a romantic at heart. I love 'love stories', and that is something that should never go out of fashion. The four films I have done are very different from one another."

She says "Raabta" is a romantic drama. And one cannot actually put "Bareilly Ki Barfi" in one genre because it has got a little bit of romance, comedy, drama and slice of life feel to it.

"Yes, there is a little bit of romantic angle in them, but I don't choose scripts on the basis of, 'Oh, it should be like this'. I go with an open mind when I go for narrations and if I like a script, I just go with it," said Kriti, who walked the ramp for Sukriti & Aakriti at the India Beach Fashion Week 2017 here earlier this month.

Kriti said she is more of an "instinctive person" and if an action film comes her way and she likes the content, she would go with it.

In just three years, Kriti has managed to have a strong fan base. The actress has 979K followers on Twitter and 6 million followers on Instagram.

Does that make her feel like she's arrived?

"Not yet. Very honestly speaking, because I think sometimes I do feel that people forget that I am just two films old. My first film was more or less figuring myself out... When you don't come from a Bollywood background, you don't know anything about the film world. So, you are basically learning, and you are learning throughout," she said.

"Dilwale" was more of an experience for Kriti with names like Shah Rukh Khan, Kajol and Varun Dhawan.

"It was an ensemble project. So of course, the amount you have as an actor to perform is not so much. I have not yet, in these two films, got a platform where I could explore more as an actor," she said, adding that "Raabta" and "Bareilly Ki Barfi" are more performance-oriented.

(The writer's trip was at the invitation of India Beach Fashion Week organisers. Durga Chakravarty can be contacted at durga.c@ians.in)