Shruti Haasan on Turning 40, And How Cinema Taught Her To Be Around People

As she turns 40, the multi-hyphenate Shruti Haasan reflects on her 17-year long career in the arts with The Hollywood Reporter, India, with her eyes set firmly on the future. Although she first emerged in the public eye as the daughter of the legendary Kamal Haasan, she has since paved her own path as an artiste, refusing to be pigeonholed by the media.

“I was allowed to be as many things as I needed to be,” she shares, describing her early life among a family of artistes. From a young age, Haasan was given the agency to tap into the various, often contradicting parts of herself — a practice she believes strongly in, even today. She says that she has never been afraid of dichotomy — in herself, or in the people around her — and welcomes the complexities that come with it. “I allow myself the freedom to be all of these very many women at the same time,” she adds, talking about pursuing diverse interests over the years.

Her primary medium was music, she says, which involved a solitary, insular artistic process. Her naturally introverted, or, as she says, “socially awkward” personality helped her feel at ease as a musician, which involved limited interaction and feedback loops.

“Music was more comfortable for me,” she says. Despite the ease she found in being a musician, Haasan has never been afraid of diving head-first into something entirely different. Acting, she says, helped her challenge her innate reclusiveness and aversion to being in the public eye.

“Cinema taught me to be around people,” she says, describing it as “an assault of many energies” that took her a long time to adjust to, although it taught her a lot about who she is, and what she is capable of. “The lessons that cinema has taught me have propelled me as a musician and a human being," she emphasises.

Today, Haasan has established herself as a polymath, deftly balancing careers in music and acting. The artiste also hopes to break into the world of theatre some day, combining her love for both disciplines.

Following the success of Coolie (2025) alongside Rajnikanth, she has largely focused on her love for music, amassing 50 unreleased songs. "I've been really excited about everything I'm going to do," she says. In 2026, Haasan adds, she is looking forward to returning to acting on her own terms, hinting at projects yet under wraps. Haasan is set to appear in the Tamil film Train opposite Vijay Sethupathi next.