I'm more driven than ever: Kiara Advani

Mumbai: Actress Kiara Advani, who drew unprecedented attention with her performance in "Lust Stories", says she is now more responsible with her film choices and also more driven than ever.

She made her acting debut with "Fugly" in 2014 and was later seen in films like "M.S. Dhoni: The Untold Story" and "Machine", but it was her part in filmmaker Karan Johar's story in the "Lust Stories" anthology, which brought her wider visibility.

Asked if she feels content with all the attention that she has got after "Lust Stories", Kiara told IANS here: "I feel more responsible with my choices now. I am more driven than ever and determined to work harder and to deliver. I want to make all those people proud who have put in so much faith in me."

"Lust Stories" comprised four short film segments directed by four different directors: Anurag Kashyap, Zoya Akhtar, Dibakar Banerjee and Karan.

Kiara portrayed a sexually dissatisfied wife who gets caught during self gratification by her family.

The 26-year-old actress feels topics like self gratification, women's desire and sex should now be spoken about openly and not behind closed doors.

"I think cinema is a reflection of the society and whatever is being shown is because of the climate we're living in. It is relevant, topical and surely somewhere it's impacting people who can relate to these circumstances," she added.

With her acting debut in 2014, Kiara has only featured in five films. She said it was a conscious decision to take it slow.

"But that's also because I wasn't being offered every exciting film at that time. Today things are different and so I will work harder to keep that up now," she said.

Kiara has now bagged two films -- Akshay Kumar-starrer "Good News" and Karan Johar's "Kalank", featuring Sanjay Dutt.

Happy with the developments in her career, she said: "I think the most important thing in life is to be happy. If you're happy, it will show in everything that you do. What I've realised is that I'm happiest when I'm at work as I am always preparing myself for when the opportunity arises.

"I don't stress about the outcome because I know the only thing I have control over is my own hard work. So long as I'm being honest about that and striving to be the best version of myself, I'm happy."

Kiara spoke to IANS on the sidelines of the Lakme Fashion Week Winter/Festive 2018, where she walked the ramp for label Agami by Neha Agarwal.

"Neha is a fine talent and has a great aesthetic sense. She pays attention to details and her garments have a universal appeal," she said.

On her fashion quotient, Kiara said: "For me, it's more about how I feel and what makes me happy. I believe if you are happy in what you wear, you'll radiate, and then that becomes a statement.