Genelia D’Souza had lost her way after her Bollywood debut. She ran down South where she found her bearings. But she made a comeback with Jaane Tu Ya Jaane Na and is now sitting pretty, with big banners fluttering around her. What does she make of it all?
“Well, comeback makes it sound slightly weird for me,” she says, trademark cuteness tinged with pragmatism, “I didn’t look at doing movies in the South as a come down and getting recognised in Bollywood as a step up. I always wanted to act. Where the movies are made isn’t my concern as long as they are decent and I am comfortable doing them.”
Was it disheartening when things weren’t going her way in Bollywood? “I’d be dishonest if I say I wasn’t a bit disappointed,” she admits, “But I’m not someone who questions why things happen. I wasn’t too hard on myself, neither did I lose sleep over it.”
Genelia is hot property with younger audiences which is why getting her onboard to endorse ‘fun’, ‘young’ brands work. “I’m still young, no?” she giggles, “The brand endorsements are an extension of the image that people have of me post Jaane Tu…. I’m not deliberately cashing in on it, but I’m not complaining either.”
Hurman Baweja’s It’s My Life was touted as the debut to watch out for. When it sank, so did his stock. Does she regret doing the film? “Not at all. I signed the film because I liked my role in it. I have to say, Hurman was excellent to work with. Why would I be affected by what people say about him? People must have said a lot about me too during the long roller-coaster ride you mentioned earlier,” she says animatedly, “I know how that feels.”
Is she disillusioned by the fair-weather-friend attitude of filmdom? “I hardly hang out with the ‘filmi’ crowd. I like my own space, my friends, family. I am too cocooned in my own little safety net to be hurt by what’s said outside,” she says blissfully.
About safety nets… her mum is supposed to be good at protecting her daughter. “Oh please,” she interrupts, “My mum is far removed from all of this. She’s the most non-interfering person on the sets. If she’s on the set in the first place, it’s because I want her there.”
Genelia has said that she will not do things she’s not comfortable with, including revealing scenes. After replacing sizzler Jiah Khan in Ken Ghosh’s Yahoo, the producers hint tantalisingly that we will soon see Genelia in an unprecedented ‘glamourous’ look. “You don’t think I’m glamourous?” she teases. “I don’t have problems looking glamourous. If that’s what the role is then that’s part of my job. The makers have said what they had to about the film. I will not add to that. Hopefully you’ll be pleasantly surprised,” she says, smiling.
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