Alia Bhatt: I'm Working To Wards Looking More Feminine

Alia Bhatt who embarked on a break soon after the release of Badrinath Ki Dulhania earlier Athis year, is returning to work later this month as she kicks off Meghna Gulzar’s Raazi. Produced by Junglee Pictures and Dharma Productions, the espionage thriller will be shot in Kashmir, Punjab and Mumbai. It is based on Harinder Sikka’s novel, Calling Sehmat and Alia plays a Kashmiri girl married to an army officer (Vicky Kaushal) across the border, who provides the Indian Intelligence with invaluable information during the 1971 Indo-Pak war and saves the lives of scores of soldiers. Incidentally, the 24-yearold actress’s latest screen turn takes her closer to her roots — her actress-filmmaker mother Soni Razdan is half German and half Kashmiri.

She has been reading Sikka’s book and finds it helpful as far as her prep is concerned. “It has helped me add extra layers to my character. The script is a lovely adaptation of the book, which is extensive; it has a lot of stories. I just wanted to get the backstory right in my head,” she explains.

Ask her if she was apprehensive about taking up the film given its politically-sensitive setting and story, she says, “It’s a true and novel story to be a part of so I had no reservations.”