Interview: Alia Bhatt on why she uses her gut feeling to choose films

In upcoming Dear Zindagi”, Alia plays a young woman who forms a bond with her therapist, played by Shah Rukh Khan

Alia Bhatt’s two earlier releases in 2016 clicked at the box office and won her accolades for her performance. In her upcoming big-ticket film “Dear Zindagi”, she plays a young woman who forms a bond with her therapist, played by Bollywood superstar Shah Rukh Khan.

The 23-year-old actress spoke to Reuters about her latest release, why she trusts her instinct in choosing films and why she doesn’t worry about burnout.



Q: “Dear Zindagi” is about a young girl and her interactions with her therapist, an unusual subject for Bollywood. Is that what made you say yes to the film?

A: First of all, I wouldn’t use the word “therapy”. Not because it doesn’t exist, but because it makes it seem a little serious. This is more of a person who is a friend, philosopher and guide who also has an impact in an unexpected way. Also, it was a very relatable story. I don’t look at pointers when I choose films. There are no tick marks. It is just a feeling at the end of hearing the film. There are high degrees, then of course I say yes. If it’s a lower degree, then maybe, but if it’s below a certain level, then I don’t do the film. There are certain markers.

Q: What if a film is somewhere in between - neither high on the excitement scale nor very low?

A: Well, then you work towards it on set and you make it something. And then some magic just happens.



Q: So far, your instinct seems to have worked very well, except for “Shaandaar” last year. What went wrong with that one film?

A: I still feel like the film I chose would have been fabulous. It didn’t pan out like that and a lot of things changed. Had those changes not happened, things would have been different. But I have no regrets, which is why whenever I go with my instinct, there’s always a satisfaction.

Q: Where does this instinct come from?

A: I don’t know. I think your first gut feeling is the correct feeling. Whenever you do a film for the wrong reasons, it may or it may not pan out. Sometimes people do it because it is a good move, or the right move. I don’t know, maybe one day I will do a film for the wrong reasons and it will work for me. I don’t know because I have never tried that. I know this one way. Gut feeling is the best indicator because then you can’t blame it on anyone.

Q: You play a girl who has a lot of pent-up emotions. Do you know people like that?

A: I am like that. I am expressive, but secretive about my emotions. One of the things that the film says is - it is OK not to be OK. I think that is really important.



Q: In one of the promotional activities for the film, you were asked to give life advice to people. Are you good at that?

A: I come from a family that has an opinion on everything – from disease to divinity, as my father says. So yeah, I am good at giving advice. Just not good at following it (laughs).

Q: Do you ever worry about burnout, especially since you started working so early in life?

A: I try not to think about so many things. People think about it, they worry about it and they plant ideas in my head. I feel the more I think about me, my future and all that, it takes the fun out of life. I only think about the choices I want to make and act responsibly, not say or do stupid things - like break the law or get caught doing stupid things.