Nikita Dutta: ‘Actors are getting into the plastic world'

Last month when Nikita Dutta featured in Ram Madhvanirsquos historical series The Waking of a Nation it satiated the actor in her With her upcoming work Kookie Gulati and Robbie Grewalrsquos heist thriller Jewel Thiefmdashcostarring Saif Ali Khan and Jaideep Ahlawatmdashshe is living her Bollywood dream playing the classic heroine and drawing inspiration from all the stars she grew up watching Ahead of the Netflix filmrsquos release in conversation with midday Dutta reveals the joy of shooting for an outandout masala film why she doesnrsquot compromise her individuality to become a commercial star and her admiration for Jewel Thief costar Khanrsquos actorwife Kareena Kapoor Khanmdashwho she believes is the last of the starsEdited excerpts from the interviewWhat was it like to be a part of a quintessential Bollywood thriller which has songanddance and carries the filminess of the movies of the pastWe all know the hook steps of popular Bollywood numbers It is what we all love to do However much we say that cinema is real and great which it is in parts when you talk about the Bollywood that we have grown up to the realistic films took away the filminess of it So it was exciting to be a part of that because I was getting to do what I have always dreamed of doing The closet actor in all of us has somewhere enacted that in front of the mirror I was told lsquoYou arenrsquot a heroine until you have worn a saree in the snowrsquo I am still waiting for thatJaideep Ahlawat and Nikita Dutta in Jewel ThiefOver the years female actors have spoken about how difficult it is to pull off a mainstream heroine act convincingly Therersquos also been a discourse around how such stereotypes set unrealistic standards of beauty and put pressure on women to look a certain way if they want to be a part of commercial cinema So what goes through your mind when doing a commercial filmIf we go back to our classic heroines who are known for doing commercial cinemamdashfrom Sridevi Madhuri DixitNene to Aishwarya Rai BachchanmdashI always look up to these actors and feel they tick all the boxes for me If you see none of them were trying to be like each other They all had their own personality And thatrsquos what made them so popular Or if you look at Kareena Kapoor Khan she is the last in the league I have no one else in mind who looks good dances great and has these fabulous expressionsWhat I am trying to do right now irrespective of Jewel Thief is not follow a trend or get into the zone where everyone is blindly getting into the plastic world and looking like clones of each other I am trying to stay true to what I saw growing up which is to have your own personality but at the same time try to adapt to what a particular film or story demandsAfter Jewel Thief you have another film coming up this year While you seem to be busy with projects therersquos a sense in the industry that work has slowed down Forsomeone who juggles films TV and OTT whatrsquos your understanding of the happenings in the industry right nowSomewhere when OTT picked up there was a boom that happened and there was an abundance of work So we got used to that but now everyone including makers has become cautious People have more options so they pick and choose and they arenrsquot ready to watch anything or everything So many changes have happenedmdashOTT platforms merging and the numbers of a film getting affected because it has come directly to OTT I wouldnrsquot say that work has slowed down but therersquos a lot of processing We are going through a change where makers are trying to see what will and will not work So experiments are bound to happenHas that affected the quantity of offers coming your wayIrrespective of anything you get offered things and you just have to choose the best from what you get Thatrsquos an ongoing processNikita Duttarsquos works Lekar Hum Deewana Dil 2014 Ek Duje Ke Vaaste 2016 Haasil 2017 Gold 2018 The Big Bull 2021 Khakee The BiharChapter 2022 The Waking of a Nation 2025atOptionskeyd0ddb8ef8f1a62a8cdd22fac27fc5ea7formatiframeheight90width728params