Katrina Kaif: I don't believe in ego

"I don't need to look at, 'why have you hurt my ego'. That's your problem. Disrespect is different. You must stand up and defend (against) that. What purpose does ego serve? I'm just a person," Katrina said.

"Whether it is Shah Rukh or Hrithik, Akshay or Salman, I'm very fortunate to call them friends and they are important to me. I can talk to them any time. I respect them and when you respect someone, ego doesn't come into it," added the actress.

The actress will soon be seen in "Sooryavanshi" with Akshay and she says that the oft-repeated perception that she is a "blockbuster star but not a great actor" never bothers her.

She said: "My focus was to be a star. I wanted to be loved by people and seen by people. That came from when I was growing up. I have zero inhibitions about hiding and changing that. That's my journey and my story, and I have to own that. I did exactly what I set out to do. Every day I realise how fortunate I am to say that. I wanted to be known in every household, my idol was Hema Malini ji and that's what I was interested in being."

For Katrina, life is all about striking a balance. "There's a lot that you need to try and balance. A lot changes, so it's very hard to talk about your career. It becomes a subconscious engrained habit to whether I'm doing well. It's judged by the parameters of the film industry and media. Your sense of self and your sense of self worth gets driven by that. Your sense of self comes from who you are. Whether a film is a success or not has to not weigh on your sense of self."

Talking about finding herself, the Britain-origin actress said: "I'm a huge believer of self-therapy and think everyone should do it. Try to get a hold and understand who you are. You will be crushed, your soul will be crushed if your sense of self is decided by the box office and your popularity. You have to decide where you stand, for you to be happy and satisfied and growing. You have to try and place yourself where you want to be. If you're trying to chase a number, that won't happen. You won't get the kinds of projects you are looking for."

Katrina asserts that she found her "identity of who I was in India".

"I took after my father in the sense that I had a connecting to this country. I felt like everyone was amazing and kind and loving and welcoming to me. There was no fear anywhere when I came here. I heard lots of things about the industry but I didn't feel it. I don't give too much importance to what people say about what we can and can't do," she said.

Katrina was speaking on the audio show "Kissa Khwaabon Ka", available on Audible Suno.