That’s Ameesha Patel describing her career, not her new look You are looking quite stunning in the promos and you are coming back to the screen after quite some time. Would it be right to call Thoda Pyaar Thoda Magic a rebirth for you?No, why should it be? I am just looking different. That’s all! I think I looked different in Kaho Naa… Pyaar Hai, I looked different in Gadar, I looked different in Humraaz. So if you want to call it a rebirth, it’s the hundredth time for me.
So it’s just another film for Ameesha Patel? No, no… See, the character is different. So it demanded a different look. It demanded a different approach. It was a first in terms of... I have never played an airhead like this before.
Honeymoon Travels Pvt Ltd maybe?Here she’s an extremely fashion conscious girl, someone who is straight out of Vogue. Her clothing, her hands, her eyes, her shoes, everything has to be perfect, everything is taken care of. She is very high fashion. She is in a planet of her own and is unaffected by anything. The world will be falling apart but this girl would still be doing her own thing. She is, as I said, like an airhead, a Legally Blonde like character. She is highly entertaining. She is funny without even realising that she is being funny and ridiculous. So, she is comic, but very endearing and loving at the same time.
Are you like that in real life?I am not an airhead (laughs) but yes, I am fun loving. And yes I am quite fashionable! I love my bags and shoes. I am known for my handbags. I like to be well dressed and love beautiful things but my world doesn’t revolve around that. And I wouldn’t like to be that 24x7. But my character is like that all the time. You wouldn’t catch her in a T-shirt and track pant without make-up. She’s perfect.
Yash Raj heroines — Ash for Dhoom:2 and Kareena for Tashan — have undergone strict fitness regimen to get into shape. Have you done anything similar?Both mental shape and physical shape. Mental because she is so far removed from me. Physically, I always was fit but yes, I had to go that extra mile so that the difference showed. And I didn’t want to do it in a wrong way. I don’t believe in all the fad starvation diets. I didn’t want to send out the wrong signals to young girls. I wanted to do it through determination and hard work. And I so worked out for a couple of months to make it a gradual process rather than a sudden one. It was done in a very scientific way. The workout you do now will make you fit even at 40-45. I wanted to be fit and not skinny. And I am a foodie… I can’t give up food. My junk food and chocolates… I love my desserts. I preferred to work hard than hardly eat.
And are you comfortable with all that exposure?I am comfortable doing anything that an actor needs to do. As soon as I sign a film, it means that I am comfortable doing everything in that film… otherwise I wouldn’t take it up.
Before the promos came on air, Kunal Kohli’s new film was always a Saif-Rani film…It’s still a Saif-Rani film. I have a special appearance… a pivotal role in the film. It is the highlight and the surprise package of the film. But it is still a Saif and Rani film.
And the kids?Oh, they are special! I am supposed to be the surprise package but they surprised me. They are so professional, so disciplined and they understood what they are playing. They were liked seasoned actors. I didn’t feel they were children. In fact, I thought it is so problematic shooting with one kid, four together must be a pain. But it turned out to be so pleasurable. I just hope my children turn out to be like them.
Despite it being a special appearance, do you have any expectations from the film? I am just looking for lots of love and lots of magic. I hope that the film really entertains everyone. And people like my new look. I hope all the hard work I put in gets accepted.
The kind of success you got with your first two films has evaded you for quite some time. Do you feel you need to do something different?I think it’s all part and parcel of the industry. You see the peaks and you see the valleys. It’s cyclical. I am very grateful for whatever God has given me. I have nothing to complain. That sort of success doesn’t come to people in a lifetime and I got it year after year. No one has been able to match it. Gadar is still the highest ever grosser.
What’s coming up?There is a film with Sanjay Dutt called Chatur Singh Two Star. It’s a comedy. There’s a film with Govinda and Tusshar, directed by Neeraj Vohra. That’s a comedy too. I am really excited about both of them.
