Konkona Sen Sharma

I love working with my mother. I have a huge amount of respect and admiration for her. She is one of the best filmmakers and she has always given me absolutely fantastic roles.

As far as women directors in India go, I think we should have more of them.

I like to keep busy because it gives me a lot of balance and perspective.

There is a fine line between guilt and innocence.

I did 'Talvar' because I liked the script and my role.

If you see films which have been successful over the last 10 years, the women in them have been in their 20s. 'The Dirty Picture' and 'English Vinglish' are two I can think of. But there are very few good roles for women in their 30s.

Many times, one does get interesting work, but it is also work that doesn't get funded because one sure-shot way to get funding is to take a big star.

I think the female gaze is important because we cannot have just one perspective on anything.

The discrimination that women face cuts across nationality, caste or class and age. It doesn't matter where you live or how much money you have, women have always been dictated to about what they should wear and how they should behave.

I consider myself blessed that I am multi-lingual and now-a-days we all speak at least two-three languages.

I had a baby and that is pretty time consuming.

I like to be part of films that have a good story, good characters.

I am happy to do a film in Bengali language as I know and love that language.

Which actress wouldn't want to work with Vishal Bharadwaj? I have worked with him before and I really like his sensibility.

I do get offered all kind of films by and large, but the bulk of it I may say is of a certain sensibility.

The roles that I get offered are very good and of serious women who are morally upright, righteous and honest.

I have never been ambitious and have always gone with the flow.

My parents are my best friends and I would tell them things that I would tell nobody as they would never judge me and would always support me.

My mom is this fabulous, strong woman who lives life on her own terms.

My mom is well read in English and Bengali, and my dad is a humorist, science writer and a futurist.

So I never wanted to be an actor anyway, so I only do the films which appeal to me and my sensibility.

I have never been a mass appeal kind of an actor, so I don't have to worry. I don't have to please everyone.

We have done 'Talvar' in three different parts, recreating three different scenarios. And so, it was very interesting for me as a performer to be a part of this film.

It is always great to work with Vishal Bhardwaj and his team as they regularly come up with such good work.

We don't live in a primitive society any more. Many of us are lucky enough to be educated. We also realize that gender and sexuality is a spectrum.

I feel liberated as a woman, in the way I live my life. However, it's not always reflected in the world around me. So I feel privileged but also isolated.

It is important that all kind of films are made.

Stars are a part of our emotional psyche, but audiences should also support a good indie film which may not have a big star.

Mainstream cinema exists in most large industries and then there is the alternative cinema which does not follow the conventions of the mainstream movies. But when your film is small and does not have A-listers, then you have a limited budget and it becomes hard to release your film.

But I'd love to have a uniform to wear every day and not have to worry about expressing myself with my outfits - which is also fine once in a while.

I'm reading Elena Ferrante's 'Neapolitan' novels. They are amazing. I feel like she gets the entire experience of being a woman.

I think it can be difficult to get funding for a film, but I was lucky.

I know the ropes of this industry, and I also know how unpredictable it can be.

Of course, I am choosy because I want to do good cinema.

Yes, I did have occasional scripts like a 'Lipstick Under My Burkha' or a 'Talwaar' that nurtured the performer in me, but I do wish there were more options.

Unless I think I can manage to make something decent, I won't.

There are only certain kinds of people who are shown falling in love. It's by and large always heterosexual, it is either thin or fair people. It's not like that in the real world.

Not everybody is exactly the same, and superficially, we are all different in different ways. The common thread is the humanity that binds us.

My sensibility is such that I automatically get drawn to films that have a good story, good characterization.

The whole era of post-Partition and pre-liberalization fascinated me.

Who are these people who are taking these decisions of casting only young actors in films? It is the filmmakers and the film producers. I don't know if that is what the audience wants because I really believe that masses respond to a good story.

I think most of the times there is a disconnect between audience and filmmakers.

It seems that the ideal age for a Bollywood heroine is 24, which is great, but it would be nice to see some older women too on the big screen.

I wish that Bollywood weren't so youth and beauty obsessed when it comes to women. I think it is very 'under representative' of women in their 30s.

The kind of films I do and I've done don't have song and dance sequences.

I'm not too keen on dancing, I can't dance too well.

I'm very serious about my career. If someone feels that I carry a serious heroine tag, so be it.

I'm very used to being misquoted.

It's not like I have anything against it, I just chose the kind of films that appeal to me, and mindless entertainers don't often appeal to me.

I mean I loved 'English Vinglish' and I love Sridevi, but 'English Vinglish' still needs a Sridevi to get made, it's not like it's just any unknown actor.