I learned very early in my career that when I don't arrive on set, production will shut down, which means people won't get paid; there's that much responsibility.

Every movie that I do, I always try and better myself in the next one and try and find a part which is more challenging. It's a little vulnerable to do that, to always push the envelope. You position yourself for a lot more flack or a lot more critique because you're trying to do something different. Sometimes you're good at it and sometimes you're not, but it's a chance you have to take to make life exciting.

I did not want to be the stereotype of either Bollywood or what Indian actors are usually offered. The exotic, beautiful girl, or the academically inclined nerd. And I wanted to play a lead... I didn't settle for less.

If my film does not do well, it really hurts me. But by God's grace, even if some of my films may not have done well, people have still liked my work in it.

I used to get upset with the word Bollywood, and what it means in the West. The stereotype of us being dancing, singing, puppet showgirls. Indians are nearly one fifth of the world's population; we have one of the most prolific film industries in the world. When people used to ask me about it, or replicate what they think is Bollywood dancing, thinking that they're being funny, I used to get offended. But now I show them the stuff we do.

I am a little old fashioned. I believe that in a relationship a man and a woman are never equal.

I don't think a lot of people in America understand what Indians are. And that's our fault, a little. We tend to forget our roots a bit. As kids we think, If I'm too Indian, I'll be put in a box, and people will think of me as different. They'll think I'm weird, because I eat Indian food or my name is difficult to pronounce.