Bollywood actor Alia Bhatt recently got candid about being liked, her roles, and Jee Le Zaraa co-stars Priyanka Chopra and Katrina Kaif.

In an interview with Harper’s Bazaar, Alia was asked what is more important for her: To be liked or be respected? To this, she responded, “It’s more important to be liked.” Her reasoning was that you can be respected, but everybody might still hate you. “The thing is, it is never going to be either-or. You might be liked by many but disliked by many, respected by some and disrespected by some. You can’t have it all. You know what’s most important? Just like yourself,” the actor stressed.

Even though Alia Bhatt’s performance as Shanaya in her debut film Student of the Year was dull, she shone through in movies like Highway and Dear Zindagi. Her choice of roles after that has been outstanding. Speaking about her roles and underrepresented topics in the Indian film industry, Alia said that her film Highway focused on the violence many girls face within their homes and called it a ‘survival story’.

“With Kapoor & Sons, it was about how little time we have and how much we should value our family,” she added.

In the interview, Alia Bhatt was all praise for her Jee Le Zaraa co-stars Priyanka Chopra and Katrina Kaif as well. The actor said, “I think that Priyanka, me and Katrina are already doing roles that are sparking new conversations. We’re doing more female friendship films. We don’t see much of that. Girls’ trips, girls just being friends and not fighting over stupid things. I’m quite excited about that. We realised [how important it was] when we announced it and the response we were met with was so positive.”

Alia also said that she remembers what Priyanka once said to her. “I remember PC (Priyanka Chopra) saying, ‘You don’t really know what you’re missing until you actually claim it.’”

Alia Bhatt, meanwhile, is having the time of her life. From captivating everyone at the Met Gala this year with her audacious attempt in a white dress to winning accolades for her performance as a sex worker in Sanjay Leela Bhansali’s Gangubai Kathiawadi, the new mom is constantly winning hearts.

At the recently held 68th Filmfare Awards, Alia won the Best Actress award for Gangubai Kathiawadi. In her winning speech, an emotional Alia said she wasn’t confident if she could ever pull off such a role. She said, “When Sanjay sir offered me this film, my first question was – “Will I be able to do this? Do you think I can do this? Mai darr gayi thi (I was scared).”

On the work front, Alia Bhatt is looking forward to the release of Karan Johar’s Rocky Aur Rani ki Prem Kahani and Hollywood film Heart of Stone.