EXCLUSIVE Interview! Katrina Kaif on Merry Christmas for Not Just Bollywood
Sriram Raghavan’s Merry Christmas was brilliant which gave a bright start to the New Year. In an exclusive interview for ‘Not Just Bollywood’, Katrina Kaif opens up about her journey in the entertainment industry. She says that she is finding a lot of joy in the characters that she has been offered right now where she is able to express herself. The one thing that she wishes to do now is play a negative character, but that negativity should be for a reason.
Edited excerpts from the interview:
What was the preparation for you like to play the role of Maria in Merry Christmas?
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My preparation started when Sriram Raghavan told me about the story during the narration because I had first read the book and had fallen in love with that story. Sriram also felt this could be the perfect collaboration we could do together.
When he narrated the whole story, the first thing I did was that I went home and wrote a whole backstory. Who was Maria? What drove her to take this decision? What has happened to her inner self and why does she fall for this guy? Why is her relationship with her husband like this? The best thing about Sriram is that he challenges you to keep thinking. I don’t think he even realizes how much he challenges you. He forces you to find honesty and connection to your character.
This is a completely different role from your previous projects. I don’t remember you playing any role like Maria in Merry Christmas. How did you mentally prepare for it?
I knew the process was going to be intense, but I try not to make my decisions calculated. I just follow my instincts and my heart, that this is something I want to do at a given point of time. Working under Sriram’s direction was something that was always on my wish list because I have been a fan of his films, there’s a certain sense of humanity, realness and rawness in his characters, and you’re able to relate to them. I wanted to be a part of this world and this film gave us a chance to do that.
Yours and Vijay Sethupathi’s pairing was a very wicked combination. How was your experience of working with Sethupathi?
I would use the word ‘unusual‘, even though our dynamics on the sets were unusual, it’s restrained, and that has also added its own beauty and charm to the film. He as a person is so fundamentally different in his thinking, and thought process. When I met him for the first time, he was discussing some scenes from Super Deluxe. I don’t exactly remember the conversation but I thought ‘What a fascinating way to see something.’ It was also a different combination of how I see things, and he sees things.
What is your take on the way cinema has changed and women’s roles have evolved?
It’s a phenomenal time for cinema and a phenomenal time for women in cinema. Yes, there’s a particular type of a film that draws a larger audience, but there are many other kinds of films one should explore as an actor. Right now, the way Zoya has been written as a character or Maria is written as a character, I am really finding a lot of joy in the characters that I’m playing right now. I am able to express myself a lot in these roles. The one thing I would love to do is play a negative character and someone who has a reason.
Sriram was telling me the other day that he would like to retain and protect his integrity and storytelling. You should have the confidence to follow your heart, as simple as that. I have looked forward to being a part of stories that will resonate with a large audience, and different genres will resonate differently.
How much do you relate to the character of Maria in Merry Christmas?
The way I would describe this is that life has given all of us something, but life has given me some very trying and challenging situations, and at this stage when I’m playing this character, I was able to draw in a lot from my life experience!
WATCH Merry Christmas trailer here:
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