Preity Zinta was happy raising her twins in Los Angeles, California with her American husband Gene Goodenough, when she got a call from Dil Chahta Hai co-star Aamir Khan. When he offered her one of his productions, it didn’t come as a surprise. She had been getting film offers ever since she tied the knot and relocated to the US a decade ago, but wasn’t taking up any work. But this time, Aamir slid in a name that had been on her wish list for long — Rajkumar Santoshi.The filmmaker, best known for his gritty dramas like Ghayal (1990), Damini (1993), Ghatak (1996), Pukar (2000), Lajja (2001), The Legend of Bhagat Singh (2002), and Khakee (2004), was equally renowned for writing strong women characters. Whether it was Madhuri Dixit in Pukar, Rekha and Mahima Chaudhry in Lajja or Aishwarya Rai in Khakee, all these women held their own even in male-led blockbusters.“I first thought it’d be some cool comedy,” Preity told the media in Mumbai on Tuesday. Santoshi has also directed cult comedies like Andaz Apna Apna (1994) and Ajab Prem Ki Ghazab Kahani (2009). But when the filmmaker narrated her the story of his upcoming Partition drama Batwara 1947 over a Zoom call, she was taken aback. “I told them right after the narration, once the last dialogue was said, that I’d do it. They were quite surprised,” she added, before Santoshi corrected her, “Why surprised? We were happy.” Little did Preity know that she’d be hitting a whirlwind as soon as she landed in Mumbai to shoot the film.“There were a lot of nerves. I was always excited about working with Raj ji, but I’d never worked with him before,” admitted Preity. As soon as she landed and before she could even get her bags, they were done with her look test. A couple of readings the next day, and the shoot kicked off. “He decided to torture me by putting the most difficult scene of the film on the first day,” recalled Preity. Much to her relief, her co-star was Sunny Deol, with whom she worked for the first time 25 years ago in Raj Kanwar’s 2001 action thriller Farz. In fact, the last film Preity acted in was also opposite Deol — Neeraj Pathak’s 2018 action comedy Bhaiaji Superhit. Sunny Deol and Preity Zinta reunite in Batwara 1947.“I was just looking at Sunny that how do I do this? I love him! He’s a wonderful, big-hearted, kind, and decent human being to work with. He said, ‘Don’t worry, he likes retakes. Relax. Kuchh khayegi?’ Because main toh dheeli ho gayi thi,” confessed Preity. Since she returned to the set after a gap of eight years, she assumed like a lot of directors, Santoshi would pick a simple walking scene for the first day. “But he just cracked the whip and said, ‘Chalo!’,” said Preity. Since they got the most difficult scene out of the way at the start, the rest of the shoot felt easy.Preity wasn’t surprised to see the same Sunny Deol all these years later. “He’s always been a really good actor. Thank god there was no change! He’s still excited, gets great food, and is still shaant. The only thing is, I’ve never done a scene with him where he loses it. And there was one scene where he just lost it suddenly, and we all were shaking (laughs). But for me, this film would’ve been very difficult if I didn’t have the comfort of him,” admitted Preity. She also had Dil Se.. (1998) cinematographer Santosh Sivan and composer AR Rahman as familiar faces on the otherwise “foreign and different” set. “I’ve never met AR Rahman except once during Dil Se.., when I only asked to meet him,” she revealed, before adding even producer Aamir never visited the set except one day.Why Preity signed Batwara 1947“I was dying to do a period film. I always romanticized with the kind of era it would’ve been, the clothes, and the food. You’re always curious,” said Preity. However, once she got to the set of Batwara 1947, a rude realization shook her. “When I used to do ask Raj ji what to do in a scene, he’d say, “Preity, aap khana banao.‘ Next scene, ‘Preity, aap safai karo.’ Next scene, ‘Preity, aap stitching karo.’ I said, ‘Raj ji, come on!’ He said, ‘This is 1947. The only career you can have is of a freedom fighter. There’s no other career. Your career is your husband, your children, and your home,'” recalled the actor.Story continues below this adOnce she returned to her home, Preity felt a rush of gratitude to be born in this time and in this country. “Because when you look back at the pain and resilience people had, I’m only grateful, especially as a woman, that I can work and marry wherever I want. I have choice. There was very limited choice for people. For women, there was no choice at all. Your whole life began and ended with family,” she reasoned. “It doesn’t matter what’s happening here or there, but what’s happening within our homes. When world events happen, it’s only retrospectively that you conclude what happened at a macro level. When you’re going through something, your first instinct is my family and me,” added Preity.That’s also how she feels today, which is why she didn’t miss acting all these years. “I didn’t miss it, to be honest. I don’t want to lie by saying I did. I was having a family. It was new to me. I was focusing on my personal life. However big my career milestones might be, my greatest milestone was to have children and a family. And that’s why I could identify with this film. Even though it’s 2026, my number one priority is my family. So, imagine in 1947, how it must be! It’s a very different worldview with a different lens in those times,” argued Preity. Preity Zinta welcomed her twins via surrogacy in 2021.Preity on whether she’ll sign more filmsAfter Batwara 1947, which is slated to release in cinemas on August 14, Preity will be also be seen in Kunal Kemmu’s directorial action comedy Vibe next month. However, she isn’t sure if she’d like to explore longer formats like many of her contemporaries. “I’m not sure about series, to be honest, because they take too much time, and I have very little children. I’m grateful I have a good husband, who’s okay with me going away for two months, especially with little children at home. For series, I may have to stay here for six to eight months. Then what’s the point if I’m not there for my children? A lot of people don’t have that choice. But when you’ve worked and have choice, you have to make the right choices. So, my choice right now would be, at least till my children are very little, I wouldn’t want to be too away from them,” said the actor.Also Read — The Odyssey, Spider-Man, Obsession: Is Hollywood dominating Indian cinema this year?Story continues below this adAs she raises her four-year-old twins Gia and Jai in the US, Preity is sure that they’ll also stay connected to India. “My children are half-Indian and half-American. Culturally, they’re 100% Indian because most of the values come from the mother. That’s just how it is. Mothers are more involved, especially when the children are little. So, I’d like my children to take the best values from both the countries. There’s no hard and fast rule. As long as we’re taking the good qualities, that’s my hope. Beyond that, you can’t control anybody. You can just try to do the best as a parent. Before becoming a mother, I had a million opinions on how it should be, but I’ve realized now there are limitations with what you can do,” said Preity, before signing off.