A 'ting' smile on my face!

That was Dr Preity Zinta's instant reaction on hearing she had won an honorary doctorate for her humanitarian work

Preity Zinta received an honorary doctorate from the University of East London (UEL) on Thursday.
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The 35-year-old actress and social activist has been recognised by the university for her humanitarian work, as well as contribution to world cinema.



Here, she talks about what the award means to her, her next film with Yash Raj Films and bonding with her fans on Twitter.

Your reaction to the honorary doctorate?
It is wonderful. I am humbled and honoured. I have won awards for films, but this the first time I am getting something for my cultural contribution or my humanitarian work, so this is always going to be special to me. At first I wondered why I was getting it, and had this 'ting' smile on my face when I heard the news.

You've turned down doctorates in the past...
When I was told that I was going to get this doctorate I wanted to know why, and for what reason. I was told it was for other things besides film. I did not feel that I deserved it just for films.

How have you used your degree of Masters in Criminal Psychology in your roles?
I learnt the art of breaking down characters and doing a background to the character: their early childhood, their present scenario, their aspirations etc. I would break that down and use it in my scenes. I would actually have two pages of a character sketch, and based on that I would work on my body language. But more than anything else I think it helped me in keeping my character real. But I don't want to take all the credit. I have worked with some amazing directors and co-stars who always help me in doing what I am doing.

We haven't seen you on the big screen for a while. When are you back?
2011. I will be back with a lot of movies. I was planning to start a film a month or two ago, but certain things went upside down in my life so things have been put back. But it is only movies, movies and movies for me. I feel really humbled that my fans on Twitter say one thing consistently every single day, and that is: 'When are you coming back in movies?' I didn't even think people missed me that much. So I am really excited and I am coming back with some really fun things.

Will it be commercial or art-house like The Last Lear?
Just commercial.