Katrina Kaif says 'Boys were just not interested in me'

Katrina Kaif - repeatedly ranked in polls as Bollywood's most glamorous, hottest or sexiest star - says she "never felt attractive" in her mid teens and "never got any attention in school."

As a result, while off screen, Katrina is used to chilling with friends in attires that ordinary girls her age prefer to wear.

In a recent interview, Katrina told TOI that she doesn't carry her onscreen glamor home.

"On screen, obviously, I do work to look glamorous, that is my job and looking that way is my presentation for my job. But I don't go to bed like that.

"Off screen and in my everyday life, however, I don't want to walk around like that," she added.

Katrina says there is a good reason why she prefers to be ordinary when off screen: while growing up she never felt beautiful, or glamorous.

"While growing up, I never felt attractive at all. I never got any attention in school. I don't know why. When I tell that to people here, they find it so unbelievable, but I just didn't. I came here when I was 18, so before that, 17, 16, 15, the normal years when girls in college are having fun, not that I was trying to be a goody-goody girl, boys were just not interested in me. I was not that 'popular, beautiful girl' in school. So those basic feelings are too deep rooted in me."

Here are some other highlights from Katrina's interview.

Katrina, whose father is Kashmiri and mother British., says she has no idea where her hometown in Kashmir is. Her mother and father split while Katrina and her seven siblings (six sisters and one brother) were very young, " for reasons my mom would like to keep private."

Her father didn't have any influence on the upbringing of the children – their religious or social or moral bearings - "and not out of choice." The children were brought up entirely by their mother.

Katrina didn't grow up in London as is widely believed, but led a nomadic existence as her mother, who had dedicated her life to social causes, moved from one country to the other. Born in Hong Kong, while growing up her family spent time in China, Japan, France, Switzerland, Belgium, Hawaii and finally UK. In addition, they stayed for short spells in many East European countries.

Katrina has lived in UK for just three years, that too not in London. Her mother is originally from Bath, UK.

Having achieved success as a model, Katrina had no ambitions of being an actress but sauntered into Bollywood through happenstance learning Hindi and working hard on her diction.

She acknowledges that much of her success so far is perhaps attributable to the experienced directors that she has worked with, but she has honed her skills during the journey.

"New York was the first film I felt free, felt that I could also contribute, felt a little more confident, you know. I kind of had a feel for things now, I was comfortable. So, for me, things are different now... it's all been continuous after then. It's now that I've started to enjoy my work, to love the art of what I'm doing, rather than just being – at 7 o' clock, I've to be at the sets with my make up and a nice costume, you know?" she say.