When Katrina Kaif recalled landing in India as teenager, living next to a cemetery: ‘I would stay up all night’

In a 2009 interview, Katrina Kaif spoke about her days of struggle in the film industry, and how she built connections by taking her portfolio from one agency to the other.

By: Entertainment Desk

New Delhi | January 3, 2023 01:52 PM IST

3 min read

Katrina Kaif debuted in Bollywood in 2003. (Source: Katrina Kaif/Instagram)

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Katrina Kaif is now an established Bollywood star, but two decades ago, she was just another aspiring actor, looking to make it big in a harsh industry. To make things more difficult, she wasn’t even born and raised in India, and moved to the country as a teenager.

In a 2009 interview with the Indian Express, very shortly after she made it big in Bollywood with the hit films Welcome and Partner, Katrina spoke about her initial few years in Mumbai, and the culture shock that she experienced as an outsider. She admitted that even though life in India was very different from what she was used to in Europe, she felt ‘an instant sense of belonging’.

Also read | Katrina Kaif blushes as Vicky Kaushal puts on private dance concert for her on birthday, fan calls the viral video ‘too sweet’. Watch

She said, “That sense of belonging was always missing when I was growing up. When I came to India, I felt an instant sense of belonging. My uncle was here, I had a bit of family in Bangalore. My uncle was a civil engineer constructing water systems for the city. I came here with my older sister and she said, Katrina, this is not for me and I love our house in London and want to go back. I said I am going to stay here; this is where I want to be. Now, there is no other place that I would ever consider home.”

Katrina recalled her struggle years, and how she’d take her portfolio from agency to agency, asking if she could meet with casting directors. “When I came here, I had only Rs 4 lakh. I told myself that if I can make it with this money, I will stay here. If not, I will go back to London and rejoin college. I was only 17 at that time and was modelling. I bought a small apartment near a cemetery. I fear living alone and fear darkness, so I would stay up all night and wait for the sun to come up and then go to bed at five o’ clock in the morning and sleep for five hours. I did my first photo shoot with a photographer called Farooq. I got very good feedback. I took my portfolio and went from one agency to another. I would go there and say, can I meet your casting director. I showed them my pictures. The casting agents started calling me.”

Katrina made her Bollywood debut with the film Boom in 2003. Her biggest hits include the two Tiger films, Dhoom 3, Bang Bang, and Sooryavanshi. She was last seen in the horror comedy Phone Bhoot, and will next be seen in Tiger 3 and Merry Christmas. She recently celebrated her first wedding anniversary with husband Vicky Kaushal.

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