Celebrity Interview: Neha Dhupia

By Bollywood Hungama News Network

Neha Dhupia has mostly been known for her sizzling and glamorous characters in films like Qayamat, Julie, Kya Kool Hai Hum. However, Neha is going to surprise all and sundry with her role in the upcoming flick Singh is Kinng, where she plays a part of the gang of Punjab. With Akshay 'Khiladi' Kumar for company, Neha gets to do some heavy duty action sequences in this film. We bring you an exclusive interview where Neha talks about her experience of working on one of the biggest flicks of this season, Singh is Kinng.

What is your role in Anees Bazmee's Singh is Kinng?
Well, I am the only girl in the entire gang of Sardars… I am personally a north Indian, but being the only girl in the gang of Punjab was overwhelming. My character is called Julie, she is a full on action packed girl who deals with guns and danger on a daily basis.

You are working for the first time with the entire team (including producer Vipul Shah and director Anees Bazmee) except for Akshay Kumar, how was your experience?
I had a whale of a time working with the entire team of Singh Is Kinng. It was great working with Vipul Shah who as a producer never ever wants any of his artistes to be uncomfortable. He has an amazing ability to get friendly with the artists; he never behaves like a stingy producer and really takes care of the entire unit really well. Anees sir is a totally different school altogether; he thinks and breathes laughter, he is very funny. I had a blast working with all of them.

Since there is a lot of action in the film, tell us some thing about the action sequences?
Yes, I must say that the action in the film looks amazing. We are a huge gang of goons who are all Sardars, everyone expected macho men as gangsters, but these are Sardars, it looks really hilarious. When we started shooting, I didn't know that I would be pushed in to such hard-core action. My most memorable action sequence was this scene (shot in Australia) where I had to pop out of a limousine in a beautiful evening gown and start shooting with a gun in my hand. It was very difficult but I managed to do it well, now I think I am cut out to be an action heroine.

How was your experience while shooting for such action scenes?
Though the sequences were a bit difficult at times, I guess I enjoyed shooting every bit of it. The first time when I used the pistol for a sequence, I literally got scared of the loud sound. It took me some time initially to get used to it because that was the first time I used a gun to such an extent but later I became so used to doing it that whenever I didn't have any hard core action on my schedule, I used to get bored.

The song Bas Ek King is gaining popularity amongst the masses; how was it shooting for the song?
Bas Ek King is a wonderful song, shot very lavishly. We had a blast shooting for the song. Pritam has given beautiful music and I personally believe that this song will be as good as 'Kajra Re'; it will become an anthem of sorts. While we were shooting for this song, we were simultaneously shooting for the promotional track only with me, so I had to change my costume every 10 minutes; it was like now I am shooting for the title track and now I am shooting for the special promotional track. After a point I lost count number of changes that I had. It was quite tiring but we all managed to do a good job.

Who has choreographed the track? Was it difficult picking up steps since you were shooting for two songs simultaneously?
Well, Remo has choreographed the songs and I think he has done a fabulous job. Though it was a bit difficult to shoot for two tracks together and remember the steps, I coped up with it quite well because I love dancing and enjoy it a lot.

The songs look beautiful not only because they are well shot but also because every one is looking great. You look simply stunning in the film. Who has done the designing for this gorgeous look of yours in the film?
Well, my costumes are designed by Pooja and Thea who apart from being fabulous designers are also my good friends. I give 100% credit to them for making me look so good in the film.

Almost all the males in the film are playing Sardars, so obviously they must have taken more time in getting in to their costumes and makeup etc. How was the experience looking at all of them getting ready for their shots?
The experience was really hilarious. It was funny to look at everyone on the sets clad in a pagdi with beard and moustache etc. In the beginning it was a little weird to see men taking more time on the sets to get ready but later on it was fun. It was difficult for them at times because some times the beard used to prick or they used to feel extremely hot in the pagdi and the outfit. It must have been a record of sorts and happened for the first time in the history of Indian Cinema that we girls got ready before the guys (laughs).

Usually when there are two or more actresses in a film, small spats are bound to happen, any such thing that happened between you and Katrina?
No, not at all... We never had any kind of problem while shooting together, in fact I think she is very professional and we both enjoyed working together.

Akshay Kumar being around on the sets means a lots of pranks, were you the victim of any of his pranks?
For a change, no! Not at all… Akshay didn't play any pranks with me this time because I was a victim of the same on the sets of Garam Masala so this time I was extra alert and didn't fall prey to any of his tricks.

• Interviews