Eight years away from the big screen, and Preity Zinta is back — with her spark firmly intact. From the recently released Batwara 1947 to the upcoming action-comedy, Vibe directed by Kunal Kemmu, she’s stepping into this new chapter with the same warmth and infectious energy that have made her a fan favourite. When she walked onto the Bombay Times Lounge set, she brought the buzz with her — and her fans lapped it up. Here are excerpts from our chat with her. And yes, the vibe was chilled-out, chatty and very, very PZ!

When I was acting, everything was about me. The whole focus was me. Then I stepped into cricket (owning an IPL team) and learned that it didn’t matter what I was doing, the focus was the game. I’ve been through phases of my life where I’ve gone out, worked very hard for 18-hours a day. When you are 20, you are fine doing that. Now as a homemaker, it’s about focusing on the personal side of my life, where you are not the centre of the universe, your kids are. It’s a lot of work but a lot of joy, too.

I always knew that films were a part of my life, but it wasn’t just that. Also, I think it comes from being a fauji kid. I never grew up thinking movies could be a career. I wanted to study criminal psychology and be a detective. I accidentally got into this industry, and it was more about survival, because I ran away from home and ended up here.

Kunal is very good with comedy. It was a very tough shoot, as we were shooting for 16-17-hour days. I was okay with it because I wanted to finish all my work and go back home to my kids. My first thought when I read the script was, I wanted to do action; the film had that and it is also a funny film. It is actually quite a mad film with a fresh take on spy thrillers. Everyone’s doing these spy thrillers, and this had a little twist to it and a different vibe. So, I said, let’s give it a shot.

Absolutely! Earlier, whatever role you were doing, it was always in shades of white. There was no grey. The hero and heroine were only doing good things. The villain or the other character was only dark. There was nothing in between. Today, that has changed. But even then, people sometimes want to humanize the character and ask, ‘Why was this character like that?’ The hero can still jump out of the eighth floor, give five kicks, kill 10 people and come back and save you and we love that too. But there are also other kinds of films being made.

Yes, it is like in school if you got bullied, you got bullied by 20 people. Today, you’re getting bullied by 20 million people (on social media). Everybody is saying something. So, when I’m back home in America, I post on social media during the IPL, and then I disappear. You don’t just look at the nice comments; you tend to look at the negative comments, too. I don’t want my mental health to be affected by it. There are days when you’re really happy and you’re like…nothing can come in my way. Then there are days when it hits you. Today, everything is online and they’ll never let you forget anything, which is sad, especially for the younger generation. You know, the beauty of youth is that you can make mistakes and learn from them. But this makes it so much harder for them.

I would make the same mistakes in the same way. I believe that life is a chain reaction. If I changed something from my past, then I wouldn’t be here. All that has happened so far had to happen for me to be here. The only thing, if I had to look back and alter, would be losing my dad when I was 14. I wouldn’t want that to happen. But again, if that wouldn’t have happened, I don’t think I would have been an actor.

Well, they’ve travelled to India. I don’t like them being photographed here, and when I get photographed, my daughter gets a little upset and asks, “Why does that person want a picture with you?” A few times, when she has wanted to come with me in the picture, I told her no, and she got a little upset. Hence, I try to find a balance. They haven’t seen any of my movies, and I don’t think I would want them to, because I’m always with another actor, and I think it will be devastating for them at this point to see me with another male on screen.

It’s easy to judge people and I do feel the world has become very superficial. Today, when newcomers come, I feel bad for them because everyone is told they can buy followers and comments. The paparazzi is called and told, “I will be here”, and then there is your red-carpet look, airport look and whatever else. I’m not judging anyone. When I came here from Himachal Pradesh, I knew nothing. Yes, there were film families and their children, but at least it was a level playing ground. Today, you’re telling a new kid to buy likes, comments and followers. For those reasons, I feel really bad for the new generation that’s coming in. If I was starting off today, I think it would have been a much tougher zone.

As Rakesh Roshan’s Koi... Mil Gaya marks its 20th anniversary today, Hrithik Roshan and Preity G Zinta share special memories attached to the sci-fi film that was loved by the audience and went on to become a huge success. Read on...

Hrithik: Koi... Mil Gaya, as a concept, was never done before in Indian cinema. A film based on a developmentally disabled man and a friendly alien encounter set against a sci-fi background, complete with emotions and then, Jaadoo bestowing Rohit (Hrithik’s character) with his powers as he departs from earth – this premise was unheard of. When there is so much freshness in a subject, you do not have reference points to consider while making a film, or for the audience to set expectations. It was a worthy risk that we were undertaking, but there was no pressure.

I remember that I was irritated with Hrithik for being late on the first day of his own film. Suddenly, someone tapped my shoulder and when I turned, I couldn’t believe my eyes. It was Hrithik dressed as Rohit. He had been on set all along, but I wasn’t able to recognize him. At that moment, the entire movie made sense to me. He had done a lot of hard work to not be the sexy guy, but a simple boy.

Through the conceptualization process, everyone around us was very encouraging. But when the teaser came out, a lot of people expressed their apprehension about me playing a developmentally disabled character and felt that it might prove to be the end of my career. However, I was very confident as I had put my heart and soul into Rohit. He was an unseen, vulnerable side of me and when you are projecting a part of your true self honestly on-screen, it can never go wrong.

Preity: I was excited because it was a very different film. But once the initial excitement faded, I realized that it was an equally difficult film as well, because we weren’t playing the usual hero and heroine. It’s an innocent, pure relationship based on friendship. I had to do a lot of things differently, I cut my hair short, sometimes went without make-up and even wore clothes from my own wardrobe, so that Nisha looked like an ordinary girl. It was also challenging because we were filming with Jaadoo.

Hrithik says, “Jaadoo is my father’s brainchild and was designed based on his brief to Australian artists James and Lara. He gave them specifics that Jaadoo should have big expressive eyes and of a height similar to the kids. His vision was clear that he wanted Jaadoo to be amiable and someone that kids would take an instant liking to. It was an animatronic prop that was operated with a remote. Shooting a single scene with Jaadoo would often take hours, because many details had to be precise, like matching his eyes with his hands.”

“I devised my own process to get into the skin of Rohit’s character. I would walk in circles listening to Forever Young by Alphaville, until I got the posture and walk right for Rohit. For his laughter, I delved deep into the snivel when one cries, if you observe there is a little sisak in his laughter. In so many ways Koi... Mil Gaya remains to be a film full of self-discovery for me,” he says.

"While transforming into my character, my physique was muscular as I had been shooting for other films. So, I was made to wear baggy clothes that covered my biceps up to my elbow. I opted for a haircut that would make my look rounder. In the second half, once Rohit receives powers from Jaadoo, I just had to go back to looking like my real self. The whole process was rather liberating, I was free to express and emote to the best of my then-novice understanding. As an actor, I felt completely free."

"My favourite song was Idhar Chala Main Udhar Chala. We shot it over a couple of nights in Mumbai and it was hot, and our song had heavy rains! The title track is amazing, and I still play it when my kids don’t go to sleep, it helps calm them down."

"I was very excited because it was a very different film. But once the initial excitement faded, I realised that it was an equally difficult film for me as well, because we weren’t playing the usual hero and heroine. I hope to show the film to my kids and I think all kids should watch it. I’m so proud of the film and happy that it has been re-released, so that everyone can relive the memories with us. This film touched your heart and that’s what made it really special."

Actor Preity G Zinta and her husband Gene Goodenough surprised their fans on Thursday by announcing the arrival of their twin children via surrogacy. The actor took to Instagram to share a picture of herself with Goodenough, to share the happy news and reveal the names of her kids, Jai and Gia.

“Hi everyone, I wanted to share our amazing news with all of you today. Zinta & Gene are overjoyed & our hearts are filled with so much gratitude and so much love as we welcome our twins, Jai Zinta Goodenough & Gia Zinta Goodenough, into our family,” the actor wrote.

The 46-year-old also expressed her gratitude towards the medical staff for helping them start this new chapter in their lives. “We are very excited about this new phase in our lives. A heartfelt thank you to the doctors, nurses, and to our surrogate for being part of this incredible journey. Loads of love and light-Gene, Preity, Jai, & Gia,” she added, along with hashtags gratitude, family, twins, and ting.

Soon after the news, Zinta’s comment section was flooded with congratulatory messages. Actor Nargis Fakhri wrote, “You’re so cute,” while Rakul Preet Singh shared, “Omg!! Congratulationsssssssss.

Zinta got married to her long-time partner, Goodenough, at a private ceremony in Los Angeles, USA in 2016. Following her wedding, she moved to LA, but kept on visiting India for personal and professional reasons