Sara Ali Khan, who recently returned from Cannes, spoke to us about her experience, why she likes to stay true to her roots and her travel plans in the future. Excerpts:

Sara says, “As a girl, I am modern, I have studied abroad, but my roots, my heart, and my soul is completely Indian. I think as I was representing my nation to millions of people worldwide, on a global forum at Cannes, it was crucial to bring forward what I represent. My look was a modern twist to a very traditional attire that is inherent to the Indian woman’s identity. The deconstructed saree look was the best take I could have on that. I think there was something extra special about this look, especially because many made a humbling comparison of me with my daadi.”

Sara says, “One day I aspire to do a film that will be shown at Cannes. But in the meantime, I’m a proud Indian actor and I’m a woman. I talk about the importance of women in cinema and behind the camera, and in front of the camera. If I had to describe Sara with three adjectives, they would be woman, actor and Indian. I went there to represent all these. If in the bargain anybody said it’s a statement that I’m making, it’s a compliment to me. But that was not the intention.”

A self confessed travel junkie, Sara says, “I want to go backpacking around the north-east region of our country. The farthest I have been towards the east is Kolkata, and Assam only once. I really want to visit Meghalaya, Nagaland and Arunachal Pradesh. That’s the next thing on my bucket list. Norway and the northern lights are also very high on my bucket list, I would love to visit soon.”

She, who recently tried puchka in Kolkata, shares, “I firmly believe in being fully present in the moment, especially when I am travelling. I like all kinds of food, to be honest. I like the idea of living like a local wherever I go be it in terms of food or aesthetics.”