Kriti Sanon has notched up yet another praiseworthy act as the non-conformist Ally in
Cocktail 2, now playing in theatres. In a freewheeling chat with t2, the stunning actor — who has been on a roll — spoke about her latest role, her greatest challenge and more.
There has been so much appreciation for your Ally in Cocktail 2. Is there anything in the feedback that has come your way for the character that mirrors your primary reasons for playing her?
Honestly, the appreciation is way beyond what I had expected. It is very overwhelming at this point.
The character is quite unlike anything that I have played before. Before this, I had not played such a free-spirited, absolutely unhinged and unapologetic character, who, at the same time, is also vulnerable and has her moments of empathy and a kind heart. Ally is not superficial, and that is what I loved about her. She is authentic and always present in the moment. She lives life to the fullest and is not bound by what people make us believe is right or wrong. She does what her heart believes in and she doesn’t think of having any regrets in life. She is the kind of girl who will have kadhi chawal off the windshield of a car (laughs) just because she feels like doing it and because she doesn’t know whether she will even get it tomorrow.
At a time when we are all obsessing constantly over the past, present and future, Ally is very refreshing. She also doesn’t judge people. It was great for me to play someone who is very different from who I am as a person. I am an overthinker, something that she absolutely isn’t. In fact, she doesn’t even think at all sometimes! She gives love to everyone in the moment, like that scene where she just goes and hugs a stranger who holds a placard saying that he needs a hug. It was such a beautiful moment for me as an actor and gave the character a lot of grounding, making me understand a lot more about her than just describing her as “free-spirited”. I am glad that people are looking beyond just the fact that Ally looks amazing, that she looks hot....
After watching the film, has anyone told you anything in their analysis of Ally that makes you see her from another point of view?
It wasn’t really shown as much in the film, but Ally comes across as someone who may have a lot of people around her but she doesn’t get attached to anyone or anything, though deep down she somehow craves it. The audience is gauging that from many things, especially that scene where she hugs the stranger. That was interesting for me to know because I looked at that moment more in an empathetic way, in the sense that she feels for people. But viewers have dug deeper into her feeling of loneliness.
You have done your mix of glam and de-glam roles. Cocktail 2 has you in a totally oomphy avatar. Did you have to do anything special to get into Ally’s skin?
Yes, absolutely... I worked a lot harder than I have done in that aspect for any other film. In fact, I was looking back at my filmography and there haven’t been many out-and-out glamorous films, especially of late. Crew was, to some extent, and perhaps even Sifra (her character in Teri Baaton Mein Aisa Uljha Jiya), but Ally has taken it many steps ahead.
She is a beach girl living in Sicily and I had to look like I belonged to that setting. Ally also dresses in the way she wants to, which explains a lot of mismatched stuff in her wardrobe. She is never proper and yet she is properly put together. She embodies a beautiful, chaotic mess. The Sicily portions had a lot of beachwear. The screen tends to add about eight pounds to one’s frame, so I had to make sure I was way leaner. At the same time, Homi (Adajania, director) and I were both very clear that we wanted Ally to not look anorexic or have the glow taken away from her face. I had to be fit, not skinny.
So I had to go on a strict calorie-deficit diet, which was very difficult for me because I am such a foodie! It was especially tough because I was in Italy and everyone around me was having pizza, pasta and gelato, while I was on a bland diet!
I also had to be extremely disciplined with my workouts. I normally train three or four times a week, but during Cocktail 2, I had to work out every day. I am not a cardio person at all, but for this, I had to include a little bit of cardio like doing incline walks. That really helped me. I am the kind of person who needs constant motivation. So I needed to have a goal if I had to count calories, work out every single day and do cardio, all of which I don’t like doing at all. Cocktail 2 gave me a solid enough goal in that sense.
Are you a beach person or a mountain person?
I am completely a beach person! That is actually funny because I have a little bit of a phobia of being underwater... I feel like I am unable to breathe and I find it uncomfortable. But I love the water, the sun, the sand... I could go for a beach holiday anytime. The sea and the sun together make me happier.
Cocktail 2 comes on the heels of Tere Ishk Mein, which had you playing an extremely emotionally challenging role. Did jumping into this film after that prove to be liberating in many ways?
Yes, that was a very intense film and I am glad it got over before I started Cocktail 2. I felt very emotionally drained after playing Mukti in Tere Ishk Mein and Ally came as a breath of fresh air. I also had time between the two films to work on my body and not look the same in both. Playing Mukti, especially in the second half, was very draining and I am glad I got to go to a beach in Sicily after that and shake that off.
Would you say that you have found a friend for life in your Cocktail 2 co-star Rashmika Mandanna?
Absolutely! I am so glad our paths crossed and we got to work in a film together. We constantly work with so many people and then you meet them at parties or events, but it doesn’t really translate into a friendship because you get to know them for such a short time. With Rashmika, the friendship clicked instantly. She has such a positive aura and a really good heart. I tend to pick up vibes of people and my heart always knows if this is my person or not. With her, my instinct worked and I am glad we had this journey together and I do feel like I have a friend for life.
After Mimi, that won you a National Award, which role do you feel has showcased your range as an actor fully?
It is quite tricky because there have been very different films after that. But if I have to talk about showing my range as an actor, Do Patti really challenged me differently. It wasn’t a theatrical release, but playing a double role — and two very layered and damaged characters, in different ways — was very challenging. The combination of Tere Ishk Mein and Cocktail 2 being so varied and coming back-to-back is also something that I would count on this list.
Poised at the point you are at today, what are you looking for as an actor?
Another challenge, something that I haven’t done before. When you have worked for 12 years already, it is, of course, difficult to find something that you haven’t explored before. I am hungry as an actor and I want to do something different every time. I also get bored of doing the same kind of things, so I tend to not choose characters that overlap too much.
I have enjoyed having a few grey shades in my characters, like Ally in the second half of Cocktail 2 and Mukti in certain bits of Tere Ishk Mein... they aren’t perfect at all. There were some grey shades in Do Patti as well. I like playing such people because then the challenge is to make the audience not like parts of you and yet make them feel for you and love you in some way. It also helps me explore parts of characters that I don’t have in me and don’t relate to. I would love to play characters who are a little bit more negative than what I have already done so far. I would also love to play a superhero....
I would love to see you in an out-and-out action role...
I would love to do that! That is something that I haven’t done much of and I am blessed with the height and the body to do an action role, though, honestly, I am not really an athletic person and playing such a role would need a lot of training for me. But that is the kind of challenge I would be excited for.
Also, I have not done too many thrillers. I haven’t done a biopic yet... Parvati Bai in Panipat is the closest I have come to playing a real-life person so far. Right now, I am exploring, reading, hearing a lot of stuff and looking for the next challenge that gets me excited and scared at the same time.
My Top 3 Kriti Sanon films are...
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