PremiumKatrina Kaif and 20 years of dedication to be finally called an ‘actor’ – She has finally arrived with Merry Christmas!
Katrina Kaif debuted in 2003 and these 20 years have been about dedication and ignoring the negativity that was in abundance at one point.
Last Updated: 04.39 PM, Jan 14, 2024
“You will only fail to learn if you do not learn from failing,” reads a line from Stella Adler’s The Art Of Acting. This industry tests your patience in every corner of its realm. No one’s left untouched; hardship and learning the tough way are written in everyone’s fate. Bollywood, as they say, is the world of dreams and also the place where they are sometimes shattered. Amid all of this is a star, who is now a superstar with a resume probably longer than many of her contemporaries but the hunger to be called an ‘actor’ for 20 years. Katrina Kaif completes 20 years in the business this year as she witnesses the release of her career-best performance with Merry Christmas.
Validation is fodder for an actor, and if there is not enough, the motivation meter goes down. Katrina Kaif has been relevant for 20 long years with the biggest franchise films and standalone projects in her kitty. The actor has proved her mettle at dancing, action, and other things many times, but the validation of being an actor came to her place much later in her career and precisely when she played Babita Kumari in Anand L Rai’s Zero. If not for anyone, the movie worked for Kaif, who bloomed as a performer and was soon called an ‘actor’. But was it overnight? No.
Reviews have written her off, reports have called her a consistently bad performer at times, and her grip on the language was a joke for many, even the industry folks, but like she told me in one of our conversations, I don’t hold grudges but continue to do what I am meant to, she continued! Zero came in as a blessing for her, where she played a superstar who was broken in love. Shah Rukh Khan came to her rescue, and she bloomed into something that no one expected.
And if one observes, everything after Zero with Katrina Kaif in it is about her. The 'act' in the actor was finally shining, and the star was now performing like a seasoned performer. Be it Bharat, Phone Bhoot, or even Tiger 3, she demanded your attention and made sure she made the most of it. But with Merry Christmas, a new beast is born—one that is not just an actor but a confident actor that can hold her ground even in front of one of the most seasoned actors in this country.
Witnessing the actor in the Sriram Raghavan film is a treat for everyone of us who have rooted for her since ages. She did not have to be glamorous, have an elaborate dance routine where she stretched her body like rubber, or stand besides the hero only to enhance the frame. Rather, she is the hero who is controlling this nuanced world on her able shoulders. Twenty years did polish a gem of an actor. In a cinema hall full of critics, all I could see were contemporaries being happily surprised by her performance. All they could think was, which version of Kaif did we just witness?
Dear Katrina, if you read this, here’s a fan asking, what changed? And keep at it; stay on that front forever; never let the torch go off now. This is the actor we deserve; this is the space you own now. Yes, there is enough room for improvement, and I am no actor to guide you through it. But as an individual who understands a bit of cinema, you have arrived, and with the most brilliant set-up. Let this continue. Dedication has paid off and will pay off forever!
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