Quotes from Shobana

Wearing heavy jewelry and make-up is a part and parcel of Indian films.

There are no hard and fast rules. Your sensibilities change as you grow older.

I'm happy to be associated with the Times Thyagaraja Awards, which takes Carnatic music to the young generation.

My mother would apply castor oil to my lashes every night. That was kind of torturous, because I would wake up with my eyes stuck close. She knew I would thank her years later for my long, curled lashes!

We are told to do good math, lead the country, or go abroad and make million. You can't blame anyone. That's the way our children are trained. But what about other things like respecting women and liking your own culture first?

I know I should be taking breaks in my performances , but there is something about the Maharashtrian audience that makes me want to go on and on.

I prefer to do roles that suit my mental maturity.

For Krishna to be such an international icon, so to speak, means there are various perspectives on him. Saints, philosophers and historians have their own take on him. While reading about their perspectives, a story took form in my mind and that's how 'Krishna' happened.

I think we all have this special equation with our art where we don't feel the need for anything else; it almost gives you everything. It gives you physical strength, it gives you mental peace.

I write scripts, I read scripts, I meet people who chat about their scripts. So honestly, I don't feel bad if I don't act in a film, as long as people are making great films.

Problems arise only when an artist chooses to be above the art. Not otherwise.

Classical dance is a growing and ever-evolving art.

I love Western classical music - I grew up on that thanks to my parents who loved it too.

Art has the power to bring people together - in communion.

I give my students the option of not doing an arangetram or having it in a temple. But some parents still want to organize events that resemble mini weddings.

What one should possess is the ability to carry off a role with panache. Once you do that, you're in.

Earlier, I would not train children under the age of six because they were so difficult to deal with, but now I have brought the age limit down to three. Now I look at them and think they are cute little things.

It takes a lifetime to master one dance form.

I have been dancing from the age of three.

You can't apply the term 'lucrative' to dancing, but it does earn me a decent living.

What Bharat Natyam has taught me is to appreciate the smaller things in life.

When I want to make a creative work, I still have producers of marketing houses dictating to me how I should make a creative video and what sells! If I face that problem, I can imagine how difficult it must be for the rising generation of artistes to find sponsorships.

I'm waiting for better scripts to come my way, especially because I'm aware that there are people who are waiting to see me come back; and I don't want to disappoint them.

My life, colored by various art forms, has been exposed to diverse music.