Adah Sharma is probably a few names in Bollywood who ensured not to stick to one kind of film genre and explored every side of her acting talent with multiple films for instance horror with her debut film ‘1920’, romance with ‘Hasee Toh Phasee’ and action with ‘Commando’ franchise. Not only this, she is an established name in southern cinema with films like ‘Heart Attack’ and ‘S/O Satyamurthy’ to her credit.

We asked that in the time and age when there is so much competition and continuous struggle to stay at the top, how one maintains sanity and she answered with very valid questions.

‘Who decides what the top is?” said the 28-year-old

“You decide what the top is and you decide what race you are in and if you want to run it or not. I can very proudly say that when I got into the industry, I realized that I am not going to be always allowed to participate in the race so then I decided I will make my own track and run my own race,” she told Opoyi in a telephonic conversation.

“I love races and keeping the analogue aside, I have been a state-level athlete. I used to run for 100 and 200 meters so I love the competition. My only thing was that I was not allowed to participate in the competition and that was heartbreaking. Once you get to participate in it,  you love it. I mean that’s the fun and I like the pressure and I enjoy it but everybody has to know why you are doing it and once you have reason properly sorted out then you are alright,” she added.

And she feels with the emergence of Over the Top (OTT), things have definitely changed.

“I am very happy to be counted as someone who is amongst the stars and the paparazzi clicks and is counted amongst the fashionistas. I like all of them but it’s also nice that I can do something like ‘Chuha Billi’ (her short film on FnP digital), which is not a theatrical release but still made so much noise. With OTT space, it’s nice that people are writing experimental stuff and I am happy that people are watching good stuff irrespective of where and what. I think good content is getting its dues so what more you can ask for as an actor,” she said.

Adah’s hands are currently full with multiple projects across languages and mediums.

“So there is ‘Commando 4’ starting very soon. I play Bhavna Reddy again like in 2 and 3 and then there is ‘Holiday’ season 2 (the first part of the series aired on MX player). I have shot three short films too as I realized that a lot of people watch short films. So just when the lockdown opened up, I got three brilliant stories so I have to do that. Those are ready so will release very soon.

“I have signed another film but I can’t share who my co-star is going to be so I think that’s another interesting film and then there is an international action film. I have shot two Telugu films which are ready and there are too many Hindi films too,” she said.

Adah says that she picks up her projects truly on her intuition and she is “glad that I have huge audience support so I can afford to do all the crazy stuff.”

Over the years in the entertainment industry, Adah has realized that staying true to yourself takes you ahead.

“A lot of people told me to put my sense of humour not to be very funny in the interviews so now I give all my answers in my head to myself and then out loud I give proper answers because I was told and was advised that if you do this and if you dress up like everybody else, if you look like everybody else and talk like everybody else then only you will get roles like everybody else.

“Then I realised that I don’t want to do roles that everybody else is getting. I want to do roles that I want to get and I can get that if I am me so I think I realized that I am just going to be myself.

“It’s so much fun and easier and there is no act you have to put on,” she said

Adah also says that she doesn’t “think of image perception and all but again I have to say I have got a lot of audience support so I can choose to do stuff like this.”