“Whenever you go to Kashmir, you find people who are very gentle and soft-spoken.”
― Soni Razdan
“Every company should have zero tolerance on sexual harassment so that victims feel secure while taking a stand.”
― Soni Razdan
“I feel, if I criticize my country, it’s not because I don’t like my country. I love my country. That is my patriotism. I want to make it a better place for my children, for everyone. And if we don’t look at what’s in front of us, and we allow things to get out of hand because of other vested interests, then as citizens are not doing a good job.”
― Soni Razdan
“Nepotism is a natural thing that happens in every field.”
― Soni Razdan
“I am as curious about my daughter’s acting debut as the rest of the world. I think Alia has got the best possible debut under the biggest banner. But it’s not going to be easy for her to go from the first to the second film smoothly.”
― Soni Razdan
“You come to a certain age in life and wonder, ‘I am holding back for what?’ Why not just say it?”
― Soni Razdan
“It was a miracle that I became an actress. I survived because of hard work and perseverance.”
― Soni Razdan
“I probably marketed myself all wrong. I had exotic looks; I should have done those glamorous roles that exuded ‘oomph.’ But in my head, I was always an actress first.”
― Soni Razdan
“I am the mother, and the emotional chord with my children is naturally strong. So there are times when I might get sleepless nights because I am worried.”
― Soni Razdan
“Between my two girls, Alia showed a natural flair for acting.”
― Soni Razdan
“I never needed anyone when I became an actress. I ran off to England on my own.”
― Soni Razdan
“You cannot control the spending habits of people. It is a free society, after all, and people should have right to spend their money as they wish.”
― Soni Razdan
“I was not nervous while making ‘Nazar’ because I was well prepared. I took three months to prepare. When I went on the sets, I knew what I was doing.”
― Soni Razdan
“People opposing dance bars claim that a lot of money is wasted in bars. I want to ask them why not target five star hotels, too, where a lot of money is spent?”
― Soni Razdan
“I had directed a short film called ‘Girvhi’ earlier, on child labour. It was a fictional story. At that time, I realised I could direct a film if given a chance.”
― Soni Razdan
“In this business, you can’t make any plans.”
― Soni Razdan
“I’m an actress. I’m ready to work anytime.”
― Soni Razdan
“In this country, if a woman wants to work, she has very little choice. After you cross the age suitable for a heroine, there is nothing in the middle; the next thing you do is you become a mother.”
― Soni Razdan
“For a woman, there is a complete dearth of roles to do. Abroad, you really have good roles, and by good roles, I don’t mean the film has to be women oriented. I wouldn’t mind playing a well-written, small role.”
― Soni Razdan
“I don’t think one ever stops struggling.”
― Soni Razdan
“I’ve never had it easy. There have been fortunate coincidences and instances, but nothing has fallen into my lap. Whatever I’ve achieved has always been through sheer hard work.”
― Soni Razdan
“You never really stop learning. You have to experiment and reinvent life to sustain your interest.”
― Soni Razdan
“Acting, according to me, gets better with time and age. The more experiences you have in life, the more you have seen, the better equipped you are to deal with complexity and bring out the depth in characters.”
― Soni Razdan
“It’s tough for a child to deal with expectations that people have if they have a successful parent. A child often fails to cope with the same and constantly tries to find out possible ways to excel – just to live up to the name.”
― Soni Razdan
“Alia and Shaheen have a smart father and have got good genes. But it’s not fair that people expect them to do as well as their father.”
― Soni Razdan
“Everyone is different, and each has to create his or her own path, irrespective of who their parents are.”
― Soni Razdan
“Compared to Alia, it’s little more difficult for Shaheen, as she has a famous father and a famous sibling, too. So, I always tell my daughters to not to pay much heed to these expectations and give more importance to their dreams. They should keep working hard and find their own talent.”
― Soni Razdan
“It is easy to say that if such harassment happens, walk out of your job. But people depend on that job. It is about their livelihood, a question of survival. So while we must encourage victims for coming up with their #MeToo stories, we should not judge women for not sharing their stories.”
― Soni Razdan
“When someone is humiliating and harassing a woman, he must be knowing that the victim is needy and left with no option but to tolerate such harassment to save the job.”
― Soni Razdan
“I am not the kind of person who won’t get married because of my career, because there was nothing great happening in my career anyway.”
― Soni Razdan
“I believe in living life organically, taking it as it comes.”
― Soni Razdan
“I never stopped working when I got married and had kids. I did television and always tried to do what I could do.”
― Soni Razdan
“To be honest, nobody was running after me with roles, so there also came a time when I did neglect the acting side and was keen on directing and pursuing that. People got this impression, ‘She’s directing, not acting,’ stuff like that.”
― Soni Razdan
“I did not bring up my child to think that she was a star. If I had treated her any differently, it would have messed everything up. She was brought up normally, like other kids, in a normal house, and it was a normal, middle-class life.”
― Soni Razdan
“Our artistes should be allowed to go to Pakistan just as we welcome their artistes.”
― Soni Razdan
“Alia was a very obedient child. The only thing she was fussy about was what dress she wore. I would have to give her choices, and she would pick her dress out knowing very well exactly what she wanted to wear.”
― Soni Razdan
“Alia doesn’t need my guidance regarding the kind of films she should do. Rather, she is quite a sorted individual who follows a strong instinct. And this seems to have worked in her favour.”
― Soni Razdan
“As her mother, I am always there, but Alia knows what she wants both professionally and personally.”
― Soni Razdan
“Like every mother, I also want Alia and Shaheen to be happy. Whatever they do, they should feel satisfied doing it. I’m not a paranoid mother who pushes them to settle down.”
― Soni Razdan
“Two single, young souls can fall in love. What’s the big deal? Rather, it’s a good thing.”
― Soni Razdan
“Alia needs a full support system that I’m happy to provide her.”
― Soni Razdan
“I am a very private person.”
― Soni Razdan
“I don’t like to talk about things till someone asks about them.”
― Soni Razdan
“Later in life, I learnt that in order to deal with people, one has to be gentle and give them respect. That always works.”
― Soni Razdan
“I frankly don’t watch TV shows that much.”
― Soni Razdan
“I enjoy watching news and lifestyle channels. Cooking shows are also my favourite. I also watch a lot of films on Netflix.”
― Soni Razdan
“I think TV, at times, is incredibly regressive, but I guess with the way few people are ready to experiment, the progressive streak has slowly crept in.”
― Soni Razdan
“I am one of those people who cannot sit idle at home; I would get depressed. I have a constant hunger to create and to learn.”
― Soni Razdan
“My passion is my driving force.”
― Soni Razdan
“My acting, writing, performance – keep me on my toes.”
― Soni Razdan
“I always set small goals and work towards them to achieve them.”
― Soni Razdan
“A doctor’s son can become a doctor, and no one screams nepotism. I don’t understand why, in this industry, people keep saying ‘Nepotism, nepotism.’”
― Soni Razdan
“Those who belong to the film families may have a certain advantage, but nobody can keep you in this business if you don’t deserve it.”
― Soni Razdan
“Acting is a fair business. If you are not going to bring in the audience, no nepotism will work.”
― Soni Razdan
“I was a complete anomaly in this business. I didn’t fit into the Hema Malini-Zeenat Aman commercial cinema mould, neither the Shabana Azmi-Smita Patil art cinema mould.”
― Soni Razdan
“I didn’t want to be a sex symbol. That was perhaps my mistake, but you can’t really change who you are.”
― Soni Razdan
“I was a struggling actor all my life.”
― Soni Razdan
“I have done a lot of things apart from acting, probably because acting was not very consistent in my life.”
― Soni Razdan
“Struggle is always very demoralising. It’s not a romantic phase in anybody’s life. It’s very difficult. What it does is, it brings out your creativity in different way.”
― Soni Razdan
“I would have never thought when I was a young actor that I would want to direct.”
― Soni Razdan
“Being half Kashmiri, it’s always special for me to shoot in the valley and to be there with the locals. They are all very warm people who are very hospitable and genteel and always welcome everyone with an open heart.”
― Soni Razdan
“I have always been known as Mahesh Bhatt’s wife, and I would tell people, ‘Hello! I’m here!’ This has always been a struggle. I would like to be known for who I am. I’m very happy to be known as his wife or Alia’s mother. But I am also a person who, in her own right, has gone through quite a lot of odds.”
― Soni Razdan
“People should see my work and think beyond what I am on daily basis, on Twitter, Instagram, or the perception they have of me in their heads.”
― Soni Razdan
“People are lazy when they cast. It’s natural to think of the most obvious fit to your character.”
― Soni Razdan
“The entertainment industry is always targeted at young people. Understandably so, as they are the key consumers. The young are the ones who are falling in love, starting out in life; older people aren’t. Nobody thinks, ‘Now I’m going to write a film about an older person.’”
― Soni Razdan
“Forget being an actor-director: we, as citizens, have the responsibility to make the country a better place. And that doesn’t mean advertising other people’s agendas; it means looking at what is wrong and making it right.”
― Soni Razdan
“I do believe that actors have responsibilities.”
― Soni Razdan
“Actresses do glamorous roles, and then, after 10 films, they do an offbeat one. But Alia didn’t do that. She picked films like ‘Highway’ and ‘Udta Punjab,’ too.”
― Soni Razdan
“It is always wonderful to have a theatrical release; lot of filmmakers desire that.”
― Soni Razdan
“The digital space is becoming more relevant, and people are watching a lot of stuff on the web.”
― Soni Razdan
“Not much changed post-‘Raazi.’ I didn’t get too many offers.”
― Soni Razdan
“I don’t know what kept us together. Initially, both of us were hotheaded, so we would end up fighting a lot. But there was a lot of love and respect, too, I guess. I believe that’s the key to a successful marriage.”
― Soni Razdan
“If you are not willing to grow together, then the relationship will not survive.”
― Soni Razdan
“Presumably, with age, you mellow down.”
― Soni Razdan
“I am a mother. Whether it is Alia or Shaheen, at any point in time, if they are suffering, I am the one who gets affected badly.”
― Soni Razdan
“Kolkata does not look like a Delhi or Mumbai. The city has its identity.”
― Soni Razdan
“It makes the city unique and hold a charm. In old Kolkata, there are some beautiful old buildings… some of them are well-maintained; somewhere reflects what the city has gone through in the past.”
― Soni Razdan
“A filmmaker is in a very vulnerable position when their films are releasing.”
― Soni Razdan
“There will always be people who will first wait for somebody’s comment and then attack them. I’ll say they are just cowards. They have no opinions of their own. It’s very easy to be a sheep; it’s not easy to be a shepherd. One should not give a damn about these trolls. One should not give them importance at all.”
― Soni Razdan
“When television emerged, it opened up many avenues for actors like me, but after a point, it also became very limiting.”
― Soni Razdan
“I am very political in my mind, thoughts, and understanding.”
― Soni Razdan
“As you grow older, you start looking at the bigger picture. You don’t look at only yourself.”
― Soni Razdan
“I wanted to work in the Hindi film industry much more than what I was offered. But if you are a grain of rice in a wheat field, it is not your fault… You are just different.”
― Soni Razdan
“I was really a very ambitious young girl when I started studying drama and performing art.”
― Soni Razdan
“I am very much of an Indian by heart.”
― Soni Razdan
“My mother is a German who was brought up in the U.K. So, there is so much cross-cultural exposure I had as a child. But Mumbai is my city.”
― Soni Razdan
“I think every content can reach its potential audience if placed rightfully.”
― Soni Razdan
“In ‘Yours Truly,’ I was the centre of the story; I was the protagonist. There was a lot more happening inside the mind of the character which was not projected loudly through dialogue and action… As a performer, playing such a nuanced, internal character is challenging.”
― Soni Razdan
“There is nothing wrong in playing parts in a good film.”
― Soni Razdan
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