If you've made it big in Bollywood, such as Kareena Kapoor Khan and Katrina Kaif, and then you do an item song, it becomes a 'guest appearance.' That's how it works. Sadly, that's the attitude of our Hindi film industry.
I'm not avoiding the Tamil film industry because I'm making Hindi films. It's just that I'm extremely busy with Bollywood commitments.
Bollywood is there; the film industry is thriving, and it's huge, and it's everywhere. Anytime I travel abroad and I say I'm an actor from India, they're like, 'Oh, Bollywood!' And I say, 'Umm, not yet!'
It's the failure of my debut film which made me an actor, which made me want to succeed in the industry. But that doesn't mean I regret whatever choices I've made over the years. No, not even 'Kaiyethum Doorathu!'
There is nothing wrong with commercial cinema if it is made well. In fact, if you ask me, the Hindi film industry has also produced some truly outstanding works over the years.
I'm not a television anchor for a Hindi channel or a radio jockey. So I may not be able to have a spontaneous conversation in Hindi. I'm a Bollywood actress, and I can certainly speak my dialogue in Hindi.
Hindi films are not made for critics, it is made for worldwide Hindi film watching audience.
While Hollywood has had a huge influence on the Indian industry, Bollywood and its actors, too, are garnering a lot of attention in the western film world.
Many Hindi films that are Tamil remakes rake in huge moolah in Bollywood.
After my debut, I had to struggle for seven years to establish myself in the industry.
In Bollywood, you have to do one film at a time, and there are no mixed schedules. And doing four films at a time is out of the question. Telugu film industry works very differently. But the kind of films I'm getting here are better than what I've been offered in Bollywood.
Bollywood gives you an immense reach. The stars have a huge fan base. The amount spent on promoting a film is incredible. To be part of such productions, in some way or the other, is a blessing for any artiste.
It is great that the industry is open to accepting character roles and moving away from the cliched Bollywood Hindi masala films.
Hindi film industry makes film for the rest of the world. Tamil films are watched by Malay people. When a film is not bound by a language, why should an actor be?
Singing for Bollywood films has an altogether different approach, as the industry has a wider reach. It has helped me reach parts of India which I didn't know existed.
If there is place for music that I do in Bollywood, then I would surely like to sing a song in a Hindi film.