Kajol: Bollywood is not the same now

Kajol, who has been a part of the industry for over 20 years now, recently admitted that the industry has changed since she made her foray. Talking about the advent of PRs and image-building, Kajol said, "Yes, image building in Bollywood has changed. Those of us from an earlier time already have an image and are a brand. People have seen and known our work. But nowadays, every newcomer has to be active on social media in order to promote themselves. They need to constantly put up updates about their talent."

The actress further added that she feels that owing to the growing social media presence, the mystery surrounding the actors has died. Kajol explained, "During our times, there was a mystery surrounding us. Everything would not be disclosed, so our fans would crave to know more about us. But now it’s not the same."

Pointing out another change, Kajol added that today there is an added emphasis on dressing up and looking beautiful all the time. The actress observed, "When the audience sees us on screen, they do not realise that it takes a lot of effort to look beautiful as we work so much on our physicality behind the scenes! This is a really difficult job. During our times, we would not care much about dressing up while going on personal travel, for instance. However, nowadays, we have to be decently dressed up as the paparazzi cover you anywhere and everywhere. So you have to put in loads of effort to look good all the time."

When prodded about the topic of friendship, Kajol signed off saying, "There are pros and cons to these changes. The industry has grown and we are becoming progressive in every sphere. With new and fresh entrants every day, the industry has more talent to choose from. I believe this change is good… the more, the merrier."



CREDITS: DECCAN CHRONICLE