Double talk

Kareena: I agree. It’s an official adaptation where Sony Pictures and Dharma Productions have come together creatively. Normally,Bollywood is always accused of lifting stories. I think it’s cool that we’ve bought the rights.

What do you mean by ‘Indianise’ ?

Kajol: We’ve Indianised the drama! English films are more subtle,the tension is toned down. That’s the kind of people they are,whereas Indians feel a lot and show a lot. If we want to break a plate,we will break it. We like the drama in our lives and in our relationships.

Kareena: It keeps Indian sensibilities in mind. Stepmom has a scene where Susan Sarandon is smoking marijuana while she and Julia Roberts have a talk about her cancer. We have done the scene over a cup of coffee. We Are Family is more emotional which is how our audience likes it. I prefer it that way too since I cry well on screen.

But why do we still lift so many Hollywood plots?
Kajol: You know,there is this old showbiz saying that there are only seven original scripts in the whole world! A film is much more than an original idea. It’s how you tell a story.

Kareena: You can say we lack original ideas but the Indian audience is still not very keen to experiment. Our biggest hits are still the so-called commercial films. If we made films like Inception and Shutter Island,they would be labelled arthouse and very few people would see them.

What’s it like to be a ‘working heroine’ in today’s Bollywood? Do you agree that the shelf life of a heroine is shorter than that of the hero? Are there enough strong female parts being written?
Kajol: I agree that it’s tough being a heroine. It’s easier to sell a film if the man is the hero. There are directors like Rajkumar Santoshi,Ram Gopal Varma and Karan Johar,who write strong roles for girls. But yes,a heroine’s shelf life is way less. At the end of the day,Rajnikanth is still working and that too with Aishwarya Rai as his heroine.

Kareena: I don’t think it’s so difficult. Yes,it is a male-dominated industry but if you are good at what you do,directors will always keep you in mind. Then it boils down to which films you want to be a part of.

Do you think you intimidate your directors?
Kajol: I hope not. No,I don’t think so. There is some awkwardness initially especially if you don’t know the person but I work 300 per cent harder to make sure that my director is at ease.

Kareena: I’ve always had this problem. People have this notion that I’m aloof and intimidating but once they get to know me,they are fine. Some directors do feel intimidated even though they try not to show it. Then there are people like Rajkumar Hirani,Imtiaz Ali,Karan Johar and Sriram Raghavan,who have a strong personality and so can easily overcome the actor’s personality.

Which other actresses do you like to watch on screen?
Kajol: Look,my priorities in life are very different. I watch what my daughter wants to watch. So if you ask me how’s Cats & Dogs,I’ll tell you that I liked it. If you ask me about Peepli [Live,I haven’t watched it. I watch a lot of Pogo and Disney. My daughter doesn’t even like my films! She feels I cry too much on screen. She’d rather watch her dad (Ajay Devgn)’s Golmaal!

Kareena: I don’t watch too many films but I saw Kaminey and really liked Priyanka (Chopra) in it. She was very good in Fashion too. She is a lovely actress and I like how she transforms herself into her character.

And how do you both handle the pressure to always look good? Kajol,you have more or less resisted the ‘bronze it- bleach it- pluck it’ diktats but it must have been tough.
Kajol: When I came into the industry,everybody asked me how could I not pluck my eyebrows. But I stuck to my guns. I think it’s important to be fit and pleasing to the eye. As long as you are happy with who you are,it’ll reflect on your face. People have a certain idea about you as an actress,how you should look. It’s difficult to meet their expectations. So the best thing is to be yourself and enjoy it.

Kareena: First of all,let me tell you that I’m no longer ‘size zero’. I’ve put on a few kilos and I like it. Also,I never forget that for an actress,it’s more important to look like the character. I agree that after a while this whole “looking-good” business gets a bit too much.

Both of you are quite good at balancing work and personal life. What’s the trick?
Kajol: There are days and days. Some days work gets precedence and some days,it’s family. You just got to live with it,flow with the day. Ultimately,things balance out.

Kareena: The trick for me is to live a complete life. I like to travel and spend time with my niece,nephew and Saif (Ali Khan). All of them add to my life. I always want to have the best of both worlds.