Katrina Kaif on her priority while working with Salman Khan, Shah Rukh: ‘I see if there’s something exciting in what has been offered’

Katrina Kaif has opened up about her priority as a producer and as an actor. She was last seen in Salman Khan-starrer Bharat and Shah Rukh Khan’s Zero.

Clearly, she isn’t content only with donning the greasepaint, and starring alongside biggest of Bollywood stars. Probably, that’s why Katrina Kaif intends to wear the producer’s hat soon, as she “looks to develop and curate few projects”. But even before ‘producer’ Katrina makes an official debut, the actor is clear that “what one really needs to do, is give importance to the text, the script and the story.”

Katrina Kaif will soon debut as a producer.

“Doing something new is a very generic term nowadays. But I feel more than anything else, today, everyone knows the importance of going on floors with the best possible script, as that’s the king. The changing process in the entertainment industry is encouraging everyone to up their game, which is absolutely fantastic. As artistes, we need to constantly evolve, better ourselves, and our craft. And I know that’s exactly what I am trying to do,” she says.

Talking of content, the mushrooming of OTT platforms has re-jigged the variety on offer. So, how have things changed? “With the opening up of [OTT] platforms, what has happened is that we are seeing more diverse content. And for me, that’s the greatest news, not just in terms of actors but the entire industry because now, more directors as well as crew are being hired. An increasing number of people are getting jobs and finding employment, so I feel, it is fantastic news for our industry as a whole, and not just for actors,” she says.

At the same time, Katrina readily admits that for actors, too, “it’s an incredible time”. She explains: “There is so much interesting content being made. Maybe, now, it [good content] won’t happen only in films, and you can also find it on a [OTT] platform or TV. In fact, it’s another area that I am exploring — securing and developing content, which I find exciting. It [the story idea/script] could even be from an interesting book. That’s what I am looking to do when it comes to associating with a project as a producer.”

Katrina’s last two releases — Zero (2018) and Bharat — earned her a lot of praise, but the actor looks at it more as a learning curve. “Of late, I have been learning so many new things at work. Vis-à-vis both the characters (in Zero and Bharat), I got a chance to explore many fresh avenues and areas as a performer. And that’s what is really exciting me right now,” she says, adding: “Sometimes, I wonder, ‘when am I the happiest?’ or ‘what are the moments that I really enjoy?’ The answer is — when I get an opportunity to work with someone like Aanand L Rai [Zero director] and play the character that he gave me. The whole experience of working together to try and create that [part] was great. It was a serene experience.”

And with Bharat, Katrina says the minute she read the script, she knew that she “had something solid to work on”. “I saw that I could really get into it and explore. Right now, only such things are driving me. That’s what I am looking to do as that’s what is giving me the most joy and satisfaction,” says the actor, who will next be seen alongside Akshay Kumar in Rohit Shetty’s Sooryavanshi.

Watch | Bharat: Salman Khan, Katrina Kaif meet families separated during 1947 partition

She may have worked back-to-back with the Khans (Aamir, Shah Rukh and Salman) in Thugs of Hindostan (2018), Zero and Bharat, but Katrina says what she “looks for is, if there’s something exciting in what I have been offered”.

She explains: “I have no qualms about working with passionate people. Like I know how Shah Rukh [Khan] had a huge and instrumental part in getting all of us together for Zero. So, that way, we all work together in this industry. All the films that I’ve worked in have been tremendous to me in terms of [my] work as an actor,” she says.