Not sticking to a cookie cutter template: Fatima Sana Shaikh on her career choices

Mumbai: Actor Fatima Sana Shaikh, best known for films such as "Dangal", "Ludo" and "Thar", says she hopes to build a career graph in Bollywood that does not stick to a "cookie cutter" template.

Fatima started out as a child actor in 1997 with Kamal Haasan's "Chachi 420" and made her debut as one of the leads in 2016's "Dangal", also starring Aamir Khan and Sanya Malhotra. In seven years, the actor has explored genres such as drama, black comedy and satire.

“The intention for me is all about doing good work, and the good work will automatically create space for myself. I'm not trying to stick to what is a cookie cutter template because if I do so, then I'll fail.

"I do what excites me and maybe then it will become a template for other actors. I don't know where it takes me professionally or what my career graph is going to be ten years down the line. I hope I’ve a good one,” the actor told PTI in an interview.

Fatima said she has stopped being concerned about the commercial success of her movies.

"For actors like me, who are fairly new, there's a space for us to make mistakes. I think people are kinder now,” she added.

Her latest release is "Dhak Dhak", directed by Tarun Dudeja and co-written by Parijat Joshi and Dudeja. The film follows four women who embark on a biking expedition.

Fatima said the story idea and great co-actors like Ratna Pathak Shah, Dia Mirza and Sanjana Sanghi, inspired her to take up the project.

“With this film (‘Dhak Dhak’), the idea was interesting, the co-actors are really good, and the director is new but I got along with him, I often go with energy." In the movie, Fatima plays a travel blogger. The actor said as a debutant, Dudeja has managed to sensitively deal with the issues faced by women of different communities and age.

“It is a sensitive film about women, written by a man. It is sensitive towards their emotions, journey, and what they are going through. He has tackled issues of young and even old women, who are often neglected by society, and then those who are from a different community, where there’s a certain judgment around it,” she said.

"Dhak Dhak" is produced by Viacom18 Studios, in collaboration with Taapsee Pannu and Pranjal Khandhdiya's Outsider Films, in association with BLM Pictures.