The only kind of influence I want to be on anyone is by being, constantly and consistently, someone who probes herself at every juncture, improves the way in which she functions as a citizen, and questions the status quo.

I discovered that there was no difference between playing a real-life character and a fictional one.

We need women in cinema to know first that they have a safe space to open up about their struggles without being judged and marginalised.

Women need to tell their stories from their experiences, and that may not mean that it would be all stories with women as protagonists.

How sad is that life when a man thinks that his manliness comes with asking sexual favours from a woman. That's the saddest way of being a man.

I would want the audience to simply see the character I portray in each movie in its true essence because I feel acting is all about truthfully portraying the character.

Bollywood marketing is larger-than-life. Honestly, it amuses me.

I don't mind playing a supporting character if it has some substance.

Sometimes, the actual feeling of loving someone takes a back seat because we are busy defining it.

There is casting couch in the Malayalam industry.

If you're talking about industry, I've never restricted myself to Tamil, Malayalam, Hindi, or Kannada. Whichever the language is, from Swahili to Marathi or Bhojpuri to Bengali, I would be happy to do it.

I have worked with big actors, but honestly, I don't judge the viability of a project on the basis of the star value attached to it.

I've been an actor since the age of seventeen.

I am not the kind of person who shouts out.

I know how difficult it is to learn languages, since I am working in three regional industries in South India, and unless the director wants my voice to be dubbed, I do my own dubbing.

My mother had sent my picture for a TV contest seeking anchors, and I won.

I am quite content with my work in Malayalam cinema, and so there was never any reason to look outside for opportunities.

I remember I was in my ninth grade, and I was smitten by Sushmita Sen, the way she carried herself, her interviews, and, of course, her movies.

No matter how big or new they are, I always look for the intention of the filmmaker first. Their intention has to be in the right place.

I can never go back to a workspace where there's no dignity.

I'm not a big fan of just cultivating an image.

I don't know what I want, but I do know that I don't want the usual stuff, the cliched stuff is just too mind-numbing. They sell, I know, but it makes me sad to know that.

Some of our life experience makes us weary of love and make it difficult to forgive others.

I was not somebody who watched a lot of films. We couldn't afford to. We came from struggling family background.

I like it when things come to me; I choose a movie if I know I need to be a part of it.

From my personal experience, I've put on and lost weight according to each character's requirement, which has taken a toll on my health.

I reserve the right to be a participating citizen and artist.

I have been in the industry for 11 years but still feel excited about my work. That is what keeps any actor going.

Diversity is strength. Our cinema and our art forms need to diversify so that it tells all stories, all perspectives.

You can't just skim the surface of any role. You have to find the depths, because any other way would be dishonest.

Both my parents are lawyers. They come from humble beginnings.

Sameera, my character in 'Take Off,' was extremely intense.

Cinema is very important to me. I derive a lot of strength from this art form, and I believe that it is very impactful socio-politically.

I have been shocked at some senior actors who made lewd comments on my body. They think it is normal, and in fact, I thought it was normal. But, much later, I failed to see how that is a normal thing.

Reviews are extremely subjective, but I have respect for them.

One must keep challenging oneself to do well in any profession.

The day the audience feel they are watching Parvathy instead of the character, that would be me failing as an actor.

I have committed myself to giving quality work.

I longed for people to forget Parvathy and remember my character. That has finally happened in Malayalam.

I have worked in films where we just put on the make-up and go in for a shoot without any discussions and even a talk with the director.

The writer and the director are ultimately responsible for what is portrayed and glorified in a film. Then comes the producer.

I have always been arrogantly confident about the work I have done.

I want to make the work space more dignified and safe for women.

We should release films without revealing the director's name, as his or her gender would not be a barometer to watch those films.

Bollywood is there; the film industry is thriving, and it's huge, and it's everywhere. Anytime I travel abroad and I say I'm an actor from India, they're like, 'Oh, Bollywood!' And I say, 'Umm, not yet!'