Kalyani Priyadarshan

“My mom was the happiest person when I first got a Telugu offer. She told me that the people here love cinema and will also love you. I have to agree with her.”

“If I failed in acting, I wanted to have a backup, thus I chose architecture. I learnt painting as well.”

“I have watched the movies of the 1980s on TV. At times, I feel that I should have lived in that era.”

“The best thing my parents did was to make me study in Chennai. I was in a school where most others around me were also from film industry families so none of us realised what our parents were.”

“For some reason, I shied away from watching Telugu films but now I am hooked to them.”

“I never thought I had it in me to be an actor. There is so much more to the job than acting. But my parents gave me confidence.”

“I would be glad to share the screen with anyone as long as I love my character and the story.”

“While doing my architecture from the Parsons School of Design, I also did theatre.”

“Most definitely a daddy's girl... but I am close to both my parents. Amma is my biggest fan; Achan is my biggest critic, so it is difficult to please my father. I am always trying to make him proud.”

“I am happy to have been directed by my father, Priyadarshan, in the Malayalam movie 'Marakkar.' My dad said nothing about my performance during the shoot. But once done, he complimented me as a filmmaker, saying that I gave the output he needed.”

“I thought behind the camera roles would suit me better because I'm sensitive.”

“Hyderabad is such a lovely place.”

“I never thought I would debut in a Telugu film; it was my destiny to take up a film that, incidentally, was about destiny.”

“I like gangster movies, personally.”

“As a child I was on the sets all the time, even during vacation. Had I known I would be an actor, I'd have groomed and trained myself better.”

“That is one advice my dad gave me... to not look at the screen time but to look at being a part of good films.”

“Within my heart, I always wanted to begin with a Malayalam movie.”

“Acting comes naturally to me as I have seeing and learning from my parents right from my childhood.”

“I have these memories of watching my dad thoroughly enjoying his work and I would have so much fun on the sets.”

“I'm a person who takes criticism personally and that had put doubts in my mind about doing a film. I tried to overcome it and give acting a shot.”