Ever since she made her Bollywood debut (with Ladies Vs Ricky Bahl in 2011), Parineeti Chopra has been talked about for her acting ability and on-screen energy. At the same time, thanks to her voluptuous figure, there’s been a fair amount of criticism about her weight.

Now, with the 25-year-old making a conscious effort to lose weight, she says, “On screen, when someone is fat, unless your character demands it, I don’t think people enjoy watching you. I’ve said it earlier as well (in an interview), that nobody likes a fat actress.”

She adds that, after shots, she would “always check myself in all the scenes” and worry about how she looks. “I’d say, ‘I’m looking thin in this scene, or okay in that shot.’ I was tired of that,” says Parineeti. The actor also admits that while the ability to emote matters, so does your appearance, “I want to balance it out. I want to act well and look good. And I’m working towards that. There are so many actresses, like my sister (Priyanka Chopra), Deepika (Padukone) and Anushka (Sharma). They are all very good actresses, and they look awesome.”

One of the other reasons Parineeti wants to lose weight is to be able “to wear better clothes”. She says, “Everyone else in the industry, boy or girl, looks so good. I’m only 25; so I told myself, ‘I have to lose weight.’ I want to look better, fitter and younger. On screen, when you wear a bikini or shorts, if you are fitter, you look better.”