“I will be lying through my teeth if I were to tell you that I was not affected at all when I did not bag the Best Actress award”

Jyothi Venkatesh

June 8 happened to be svelte Shilpa Shetty’s 45^th birthday. Shilpa Shetty is today an actress who has been rejuvenated with renewed confidence in herself after her sterling performance in Dharmesh Darshan’s Dhadkan with which she stole the hearts of the audience. To mark her birthday belatedly, we reproduce this free-wheeling and frank interview taken twenty years ago, where SHILPA SHETTY talks to JYOTHI VENKATESH about herself, Akshay Kumar, her sister Shamita Shetty, her films on the floors and  her career.

Excerpts from the conversation:

How is life treating you post-Dhadkan?

Quite well, thank you. After Dhadkan , I now have a renewed confidence within me. I am totally rejuvenated as an actress. Today people treat me not just as a glamorous heroine but as a consummate actress thanks to the performance Dharmesh extracted out of me in Dhadkan. My fans too are expecting to see more of my performance.

Do you regret not having been considered for awards for your performance in Dhadkan ?

My performance in Dhadkan was indeed a turning point in my career as an actress. I may not have bagged awards as an actress but to my credit I have received a lot of rewards in terms of quality instead of quantity.

How do you feel today?

To tell you the truth, I feel like I am a new face after Dhadkan. It’s a very good feeling after having been in this industry for the last eight years ever since I had made my debut with Abbas-Mustaan’s Baazigar opposite Shahrukh Khan. As an actress, I feel it is flattering only if others tell me that my film is a hit instead of me proclaiming it from the rooftops.

Career-wise where do you think you stand today as an actress?

Let me confess to you very frankly. Very few actresses or for that matter actors get a second chance in life. I thought I shouldn’t let this golden opportunity slip away from my fingers. I remember the times when I was literally dubbed as an item girl because I was doing song and dance numbers like Main Aayi Hoon  U.P, Bihar Lootne in Shool or for that matter the Dupatta number in Tarkeib.

What did your low phase teach you as an actress?

If only that low phase had not come in my life, I would not have been able to differentiate between who is my friend and who isn’t. Also I’d not have bothered to work harder on myself if that phase was not there in my career.

What is the reason one does not get to see you in off-beat art films?

I do not believe at all in these so- called art films. I am of the opinion that to do a stupid illogical character and yet look convincing is much more difficult than doing just an off-beat art film just for the sake of taking part in a film festival abroad

How do you rate your good looks?

Frankly speaking, I have a very low self- esteem about myself since I am not at all a conventional good looker. I feel that any average middle class young girl can easily relate to me because I am exactly like the girl –next –door.

How do you evaluate Shamita Shetty, your younger sister who has also entered films?

I think Shamita was excellent in Mohabbatein considering it was her debut film. I wasn’t even half as good as she is in Mohabbatein when I made my debut with Baazigar. Take it from me; Shamita will not make the stupid mistakes that I made in my life as well as career because she’s much more mature than me. I’m there to advise her whenever Shamita needs me as her elder sister but the fact remains that sometimes it is I who needs to take advice from Shamita and not vice versa. I sometimes feel bad that Shamita had to do a lot of sacrifices for me as a little girl because mum used to neglect her, as she had to accompany me to my shoots all over the country as well as abroad in the early formative stages of my career.

Which are the films in which you’re working currently as of now?

Besides Badhai Ho Badhai directed by Satish Kaushik in which I have been teamed opposite Anil Kapoor. I’m also working in producer Bubby Kent’s Mujhse Shaadi Karogi directed by Adiyaman opposite Salman Khan and in Sunny Deol’s home production Indian directed by Maharajan opposite him as his wife. In Indian mine is a fabulous role, which an actress could aspire for in her career. I have been pitted together with both Sunny Deol and Sunil Shetty in producer-director Harry Baweja in his new film Karz that went on the floors recently. In Junoon being directed by Sanjay Khanna in which I have been pitted opposite Chandrachur Singh, I am playing a psychic character. I’m also doing a Telugu film with Balkrishna, the star- son of the late N.T.Rama Rao.

Do you still lose your sleep thinking about Akshay Kumar?

No. It hurts one when you trust someone and the person betrays your trust in him. However if we start losing our sleep over such things, then there is no end to life. Life is short and one should try to be practical. There is no point in crying over spilt milk. Whatever happens happens for the best as far as destiny is concerned, as my mother who is an astrologer herself keeps on saying. However, this incident in my life has made me wiser and now I have learnt not to trust people or take them at their face value. I have emerged a victor after the trauma that I had undergone. I have picked up the threads where I had left and am now determined to give my career a full shot.

There are rumors that you have now latched on to Salman Khan. How far are they true?

What rubbish? Am I a fool to jump from frying pan to fire? I know for a fact that Salman is having a thing going with Aishwarya, who in turn, is my friend. Salman contrary to rumors that I am having an affair with him is my buddy. He has even gone out of his way to help me out when I was going through a bad phase emotionally as well as professionally. I am working with Salman in two films but it does not mean that we are carrying on. Please spare me!

How would you evaluate your growth as an actress from Baazigar to say Badhai Ho Badhai ?

It has been a wonderful though gradual growth as far as I am concerned as an actress. I think I have matured a lot and known what nuances of acting are over the last eight years or so that I have been a part and parcel of the film industry. Earlier I did not know the ABC of acting. I have learnt while working and have become wiser now. I think I have a long way to go as an actress and several miles to trudge before I am able to come anywhere near all time great actresses like say Shabana Azmi or Smita Patil . Koshish kar rahi hoon. Kitni safal ho pawoongi yeh ab dekhna hain!

Weren’t you disappointed when you were overlooked when it came to awards for theBest Actress for your sterling performance in Dhadkan ?

I will be lying through my teeth if I were to tell you that I was not affected at all when I did not bag the Best Actress award. I was certainly hurt because I had worked hard on the role and persevered a lot as an actress to get into the skin of my character. It was not an easy role by any yardstick. It was an intense and what’s more, a complex role, which any other actress would have given her right arm to bag. The only consolation I have is that the film elicited me rewards at the box office though it did not fetch me awards for acting. At least I am glad that Sunil Shetty bagged a couple of awards for his performance in Dhadkan.