Shahid Kapoor on Sunday said he approaches characters with fearless honesty, never succumbing to the pressure of being one of those actors who want to "manipulate" the audience to be liked.
Shahid's recent turn in "Kabir Singh" ignited a debate about romance and the toxicity in a relationship. While the film went on to become one of the biggest grossers of the year, it was also met with criticism for its hero-like portrayal of a flawed man.
"The first responsibility that an actor has towards the audience is to give them an honest portrayal. I think that happens very rarely. Because of these kind of pressures, people are so careful that 'if I do this people will like me, if I do this people won't.'
"If that means that at certain points of time they don't like me, I take that as a big compliment. That's what acting is all about. You're meant to play characters and represent life the way it is."
"We need to wake up and realise that the audience wants to see a little bit of the truth. They don't want to watch single dimensional films."