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Janhvi Kapoor has had a tumultuous year.

The young star lost her mother Sridevi earlier this year and subsequently also had the release of her Bolly debut Dhadak alongside Shahid Kapoor's brother Ishaan Khattar.

Also read: Sridevi's daughter hopes she can create her own identity

Speaking at the 49th International Film Festival of India with her father Boney Kapoor by her side, Janhvi said, "It’s harder to say anything... When I say ‘growth’, I mean personal growth, I don’t know about artistic. This year brought me both the worst and the best experience of my life. It’s a little strange... Our family is now united, so that is very big thing for me."

She added that her growth has been "tremendous" on the personal front and has helped her come out stronger during trying times.

"But whatever happened that too was [a] very heavy [tragedy]. We are still in shock, so we haven’t been able to process it properly. I’m really thankful for all the love that we have received and I got a chance to work, which is a big thing for me. I got a chance to make my parents proud, which is most important for me."

Boney Kapoor when speaking of his late wife said, "Janhvi already has an idol in front of her. There is not one as complete as an actor as her."

To which Janhvi replied, "I can’t emulate her, even if I wanted to."

Steering away from her personal life, Janhvi touches upon feminism in films, especially during the "Golden Era" of Hindi cinema. Citing the example of Guru Dutt and Madhubala's film Mr and Mrs 55, the actor explains how the film celebrating feminism during its time.

“I think they are way ahead of even our time. I feel we have gotten tangled in a trap, a commercial one. I think the freedom to tell the story was much earlier,” she said.

"Madhubala has done such a beautiful job in the film. But more than that, the concept that the film raised. It dealt with feminism. Madhubala ji’s character was so forward thinking. Her aunt was also in the film, whose character was more (conservative about) how girls should behave in a society. They did not present it as an issue, they slipped it in beautifully in the story."

The 21-year-old continued, "Films coming out today which are about a girl, suddenly we tag them as ‘female-oriented’ films. They make it a big deal that it does not have a hero. There have been so many films Mother India, Chaalbaaz, Sita Aur Geeta, Sujata, Bandini, etc. The woman was the hero in all these films but they weren’t tagged as ‘female-oriented’."