Sonam Kapoor might not have been in the best of her health during her recent visit to Ahmedabad to promote her upcoming film Khoobsurat, but she exuded the same energy and chirpy spirit as she spoke on matters close to her heart.

While her co-star (in the film) Fawad Khan, who had accompanied Sonam during the promotional trip, remained in a more reticent mood, Sonam took the lead in taking the conversation forward and said that she's proud that she "has a voice" of her own in a film industry dominated by men. Excerpts from a chat as published in The Times of India:

You are an industry child, so you are familiar with almost everyone around. How is it when you work with a co-star you don't know and never met?
Actually I haven't worked with too many people I knew from before. I was always kept away from the film industry while growing up and was raised as a normal kid. So the kind familiarity that other star kids have with stars-directors wasn't there in my case. I'd say it's better to work with people you don't know otherwise that personal equation always comes in between your work and you have to make an effort to overcome it. With new people you can hit the professional note right from the beginning, and then get to know that person in the process of working with them.

While you've travelled a lot to various international film festivals, does it occur to you to do films in other international languages?
While I'd love to do films in other international languages, I don't want to do them just for the sake of doing a foreign language film. There has to be something for me that would explore me as an actor and get something in return as well. Right now our own film industry (Bollywood) has opened up so much that you don't need to go out of India to do pathbreaking work. There is so much scope right here that I don't need to look out of India for work at all. There are so many indie filmmakers who are making amazing films which are just as good as films that are screened in international film festivals.

But you recently said that people don't take you seriously as an actor. You think you are stuck in an image?
That's all due to circumstances. I do very little work and there always is so much gap in between my two films, that all people talk about is what gown I wore in a certain film festival or a red carpet appearance, who I am dating and all those trivial matters. If I was also doing back to back films like other stars, people would be talking about my work. See, everyone needs fodder to create a buzz, and talking about my fashion sense and my personal life gives them that fodder, then let them do it. But you continue to do very few films. Don't you feel you should be doing more films, so that your work is also talked about? I need to have a life too. I can't be working all the time and not have a personal life. I like the way things are. This way I get to travel, enjoy my life beyond films and my profession. And I am happy doing this. I don't bother too much with what's written about me. As long as I am happy doing what I like, it's all good.

But you continue to do very few films. Don't you feel you should be doing more films, so that your work is also talked about?
I need to have a life too. I can't be working all the time and not have a personal life. I like the way things are. This way I get to travel, enjoy my life beyond films and my profession. And I am happy doing this. I don't bother too much with what's written about me. As long as I am happy doing what I like, it's all good.