She’s only a little over 20 and has been in the Hindi film industry for only a few years but in this short span of time she has achieved more than some of the well-known stars have in their entire career. She is an actor par excellence and one of the very few who is so versatile when it comes to acting. In a conversation with HotFridayTalks.com, Alia Bhatt speaks about her latest upcoming film Raazi and more
In Raazi Alia plays a young Kashmiri woman, Sehmat Khan who is persuaded by her father and the Research and Analysis Wing to spy on Pakistan before the 1971 Indo-Pak war. Alia tells us what went into the making of Sehmat and all that she learnt from her role as Sehmat.
Image Credit: Movie – Raazi
Playing The Character Of Sehmat Khan
“It was a very big opportunity to portray something very honest because it is a true story. When it’s a true story you feel a sense of responsibility even if you haven’t seen the real Sehmat. Having said that it is also a great opportunity for me to create this character from scratch even though its mentioned in the script. Once you just kind of crack the way this girl spoke then half of your work is done. The way you speak is a big depiction of your personality and I decided to start Sehmat off at the basic level of niceness and then take her graph onwards from whatever happens in her life.”
The Preparation For The Role Of Sehmat Khan
“The preparation was extensive, we had a month of prep. It’s important to get certain aspects out of the way like dialect, how to drive the jonga, the morse code, defense techniques etc. But no amount of prep can prepare you for what happens on set.I would scream a lot while driving the jonga and also shooting because I was so scared of the gun. I would keep shouting at people to move out of the way.”
Is Alia Like Sehmat In Real Life?
“I can’t be like Sehmat, I can’t make the kind of sacrifices she made for the country. She was selfless and I don’t think any of us have the ability to do that today. In fact, I don’t relate to most of my characters in my films.”
Image Credit: Movie – Raazi
Working With Vicky Kaushal
Ever since I saw Vicky Kaushal in Masaan I always thought that I had to work with him. He is a great actor and he is one of the silent characters. His silence says a lot and I was very nervous about this one track I have with Iqbal his character. It is a sequence which only two genuine actors can pull it off, it is a complicated sequence which I don’t think I could have pulled off without him.”
What Alia Took Back Home From The Film
“I learnt that what we think is being patriotic is quite opposite to what actually is true patriotism. What we may believe is I am patriotic because I love my country but that’s not enough. You need to do more for your country, you need to add value, participate in activities that are beneficial to your country. That’s what I learnt from Sehmat and that’s also when I decided to do a lot of things as an individual because what’s the point of being a celebrity and having so many followers if I don’t use my voice for some good use.”
Image Credit: Movie – Raazi
Working With Her Real-Life Mother Soni Razdan
“I was more nervous for my mother than working with her. I was not nervous about working with her but more worried about how she would perform. Just like how a mother would be worried about her kid! I feel that after my sister and I were born, she had to take care of us and look after us and people probably thought she didn’t want to act anymore. I feel like she has not gotten her due as an actress because she is a brilliant actress and she is now slowly getting back there again.”
How Does Alia Balance Her Work And Life
“There are days when I am feeling terrible, tired but I just push myself and meet my friends, family, and parents because they are equally important as much as my work is and I need to show them that. One needs to figure out a way to balance things.”
Being A Part Of Aamir Khan’s Paani Movement
“Going with Aamir was a last minute decision when I got to know he was going, I wanted to help too. What I learnt from being a part of Aamir’s Paani foundation is that he is trying to educate the farmers so that they can survive and they can make their livelihood and solve the drought crisis in Maharashtra. For me, that is being patriotic. If you have to talk at all, don’t talk about what’s wrong but talk about how we can do to solve what’s wrong.”
Image Credit: Movie – Raazi
About Switching Characters In Her Various Films
From Kalank to Gully Boy, Brahmastra and Raazi, Alia says that she has done it but she doesn’t know is she is doing it well. “We will only see once the films release about how well I have done those characters. I finished Gully Boy and now it’s just between Kalank and Brahmastra. A lot also depends on your director, sometimes when I come to the sets I forget who I am, what my name is. But luckily these films are very different from each other; Kalank is an epic drama, Gully Boy is a supernatural fantasy film, and Brahmastra is about ancient wisdom”
Is Alia Content With How Her Life And Career Are Moving?
“Being content is boring and limits you, satisfied is what I would like to be with a task that I have done and completed but you can always start a new task again. So is with goals, they are very limiting too. What after you have met your goals? What after that? So it is better to keep working hard and be relentless and keep getting better at it.”
What Would Alia Like To Be Most?
“It is so happening that every character or film of mine is different, I am choosing the scripts that way too. Yes I want to be a diva, I want to be fashionable and the talk of all fashion magazines and portals but at the same time I also want to be at the top of all National awards! I want to have a proper balance.”
A balance she sure has managed as an actress and she can pull off any role with ease and exceptionally well. From a diva in SOTY to her characters in Highway and Udta Punjab, Alia has proved that she is a star and a sparkling one at that!
Read Also: The Things Alia Bhatt Had To Do For Raazi
