Kriti Sanon says childhood shyness shaped her acting journey

Indian actor Kriti Sanon revealed that she was a shy child and said her 10-year-old self would be surprised to see that she had become a successful actor like Priyanka Chopra.

The Bollywood star sat down with host Lilly Singh for an interview to discuss how she entered the entertainment industry, the harsh realities women face in the field, and why she decided to start producing her own films.

Speaking about how shy she was as a child, Kriti recalled that her mother would often tell her, "Look at Priyanka Chopra and look at this person and that person," encouraging her to build her confidence.

When asked what her 10-year-old self would be most surprised about today, the actor said: "I think the fact that she’s an actress because young Kriti was very, very shy. Very shy. Major stage fright. It took a very long time to open up. She would hide behind her mother when people would come home. So yeah, she would be extremely shocked to know that this is what I do for a living."

Kriti added: "I have, over time, I think, tried to teach myself confidence."

The actor also reflected on her early experiences in modelling and acting, recalling the steep learning curve.

"My first photoshoot as a model, my first ramp show as a model, I messed up. I wasn’t good and that feeling was terrible. And I came back home crying. I remember my mom was like, 'I don’t think this line is meant for you because it needs you to be extremely confident and extremely thick-skinned,'" she said.

Speaking about building that confidence, Kriti said she was proud that she never stopped trying. “I think I’m proud of the fact that I always went back for the second show and the second photo shoot”, she stated.

The actor also spoke about the challenges she faced as a woman entering the entertainment industry.

“Of course, a lot of women are also choosing meatier stuff to do. They don’t want to just be the love interest. But many times, I feel like when in the beginning there was a script being narrated, the female character would not be well written in terms of what she does for a living? You know, where does she come from? Who are her parents? What is her family like? Not much. Sometimes it’s just the love interest. And the films were very male-centric, which most of the films, even now, are”, she said.

Kriti also opened up about the gendered expectations placed on female actors. “I’ve learned everything on the job. For me, that’s the only way of growing. And I’d rather ask questions than be like absolutely dumb. So I have been very curious, and I feel like when a woman asks questions, it’s like she’s going to come up with her 10,000 questions. I think there's a conversation like that versus when a man asks questions, he’s really involved”.

She also shared an example from a film promotion. She shared a particular example, referencing a movie promotion.

“There have been times when I felt less valued, and then I reached a point where I did stand up for myself. There was a film which was being promoted and I just didn’t feel like it was being promoted in a fair manner and the male actor was kind of deciding where I should come and where I shouldn’t for the promotions, and I suddenly found that so weird and disrespectful that I was like, okay fine you think you don’t need me for promotions, maybe you should promote alone.”, she recalled.

The actor also told Singh that women are often criticised for performing in so-called "item numbers", while men are not judged in the same way.

"Why are songs done by men not called item numbers?" she asked.

She added: "We’re sort of objectifying when Shah Rukh Khan does it. I mean, you are obviously looking at him, looking amazing and hot, why is that not an item number?"

Kriti also discussed launching her production house, Blue Butterfly Films, saying her desire to produce began while working on the film Mimi, which tackled the taboo subject of surrogacy.

This led her to produce her first film, Do Patti, a Netflix movie that explored domestic violence in relationships, a subject Kriti believes needs to be addressed more openly.

"When it comes to domestic violence being okay, a lot of women have probably either seen it happening around them or grown up watching their mother being hit by their father and accepting it. It goes into your system. I think it’s important through these films to at least shake them up," she said.

Kriti said said she hoped producing films would allow her to continue telling stories that spark conversations around difficult social issues while creating stronger, more nuanced roles for women on screen.

Kriti 's most recent film Cocktail 2 released on 19 June this year.