No point in doing just entertaining cinema anymore: Sonam Kapoor
Mumbai: Actress Sonam Kapoor is riding high with her lauded performance in "Pad Man." She says it is important for her to play roles that reflect the social conscience in these "difficult times."
Excerpts from the interview:
- Congratulations, Sonam. After "Neerja," "Pad Man" is another high point in your career. Girl, you are evolving fast. So much at such a young age...
- Thank you. But I am not that young anymore... I have only directors like Ram Madhvani ("Neerja") and R.A Balki ("Pad Man") to thank for this. I am a director's actor. And I've never shied away taking on a role for its length. "Neerja" was all mine. But in "Bhaag Milkha Bhaag," I was there for just brief playing time.
Now "Pad Man" is probably not all mine. But it's essential for me to be part of cinema that addresses critical social issues. There is no point in just doing entertaining film anymore. That, to me, would be very khokhla (hollow). There has to be a relevance to it beyond just having a good time at the movies.
- Why do you say that?
- Because we are going through tough times. It's a challenging phase for us women. Those of us who have a platform and a voice must use it to express what we believe in. "Pad Man" addresses itself to the question of menstruation. It's a huge issue for a majority of woman in our country. It didn't take me long to say yes to "Pad Man". And I am so glad I did it.
- Farhan Akhtar was telling me he would not do roles that set the wrong precedent in today's troubled times. He wouldn't play a serial rapist or a child molester just to be challenged as an actor. Your take?
- I wouldn't mind doing a negative role provided it doesn't glorify the character or make her negativity a virtue. As an actor, we are put in a sensitive spot nowadays. I have to showcase my ideology while at the same time I need to do parts that challenge me as an actor. My next release "Veere Di Wedding" has me having a lot of fun with my female co-stars.
- Were you competitive on the sets of this chick flick with your co-stars Kareena Kapoor Khan, Swara Bhasker, and Shikha Talsania?
- Not at all. I am not competitive at all. If I were, the trajectory of my career would be different. No... And it's not a chick flick. It's a dramedy. We girls had a lot of fun shooting "Veere Di Wedding". I was working with Kareena Kapoor for the first time. I adore her. She is so beautiful and just not conscious of her looks.
- You are also working with your father Anil Kapoor for the first time.
- Yes, in a Yash Raj Films project that I'm shooting right now. We have done two ads together. But this is the first time we are shooting a feature film together. All I can tell you at the moment is that it's a different person I am shooting with as compared with my father at home.
- Has he let his beard grow grey to look like your father?
- Why don't you ask him? You get to speak to him more than I do.
- In "Pad Man," your relationship with your father played by actor Sunil Sinha is exceptional. Did you borrow from your relationship with your father?
- No. I didn't have to. The relationship was so beautifully written in the script. And my co-star was such a fantastic actor. I love working with actors who are more accomplished than me. It's the only way to learn on the job.
- Your character Pari is the catalyst which propels the protagonist's aspirations. Did you ever realize your role would be so pivotal?
- I firmly believe there is a woman behind every man's success. And why just a woman? Every successful man or woman has to have a support system.
- The menstruation issue is still kept under wraps in our home. The film makes us think about why we need to be so secretive and squeamish about a natural bodily function?
- It is a social conditioning. We are so used to talking about these things in hushed tones. We hope to open up a conversation with this film.
Let the Truth be known. If you read VB and like VB, please be a VB Supporter and Help us deliver the Truth to one and all.
'Scams, kickbacks and favoritism have become order of the day' in Karnataka: BJP
New Delhi(PTI): The BJP on Friday said the Congress government in Karnataka may not last long with corruption and appeasement politics becoming the “order of the day” in the state.
This came after the Karnataka State Contractors Association (KSCA) on Thursday claimed that "unseen hands and brokers" were active in the offices of Deputy Chief Minister D K Shivakumar and two other senior Cabinet Ministers, alleging that the menace of commission in the state was now more than the previous BJP government.
Responding to the allegations, the deputy chief minister on Friday suggested that if anyone has demanded commission from the contractors to pay their bills, then they should file a complaint with the Lokayukta.
“In Karnataka, corruption is at its peak in an organised manner,” BJP national spokesperson Pratyush Kanth told a press conference at party headquarters here, reacting to the development.
“You have institutionalised corruption. Only big contracts are getting their bills cleared. The medium and the small ones are struggling,” he said.
Kanth said the Congress had promised “so many things” during the state assembly polls but “scams, kickbacks and favoritism have become order of the day” under the party’s rule in the state.
While the crisis of “water and electricity bills” continues in Karnataka, the road taxes on new vehicles and bus fares have gone up, he said.
“The common people are bleeding there…This corrupt government is not going to last long. This project of Rahul Gandhi to ensure corruption all over KA is not going to have the light of the day,” he added.
Citing recent remarks reportedly made by Karnataka Chief Minister Siddaramaiah’s Economic Advisor Basavaraj Rayareddy, the BJP spokesperson said people in power, who run the state, are now saying that the state has become number one in corruption.
“Even the revenue minister of Karnataka had (earlier) gone on record to say that there is a lot of corruption in his department…This is very disturbing because Karnataka has to be the ‘khata khat model’ of Rahul Gandhi,” he said, taking a swipe at the Congress leader.
Rayareddy, who was reported to have recently said at an event that Karnataka is number one in corruption, later clarified that his remarks were misquoted and taken out of context.
