The Hindu : New Delhi News : Looking beyond dancing skills

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Monday, Jan 21, 2008
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New Delhi

Looking beyond dancing skills

Madhur Tankha

— Photo: Anu Pushkarna

On a trip to fame: Bollywood actor Koena Mitra in New Delhi.

New Delhi: Catapulted into limelight with her foot-tapping number “Saki re” in Sanjay Gupta’s “Musafir”, tall and lissom Koena Mitra is now looking beyond her dancing skills to consolidate herself in tinsel town.

Having had enough of mundane dance routine, Koena says she has three comedies in her kitty.

Superstars

“I have deliberately signed these films because I want to experiment with different roles,” says the actor, who accepted “Musafir” because she was paired opposite superstars Anil Kapoor and Sanjay Dutt.

Koena has delivered some well appreciated dance performances in Hindi films and insists that that her first love is dance.

“I began learning dance at the age of four. Noted dancer Mamta Shankar trained me. Not content with that, I simultaneously learnt Latin American, hip hop and ball room dance,” adds the actor, who in her earlier avatar was a successful model.

Journey

The journey to Bollywood has not been a cakewalk for Koena as she had no godfather to guide her. She was propelled into fame after winning Gladrags magazine’s mega model contest in 2002 and got her first break in Ram Gopal Varma’s film “Road” in which her song “Khullam Khulla” was lapped up by the audience. She also did a light-hearted role Subhash Ghai’s “Apna Sapna Money Money”.

In her upcoming English film “Karna”, Koena plays the first Indian superwoman, sharing the screen with British actor Orlando Bloom.

“The international film has some well executed special effects and I will be shown performing action scenes. I will soon be flying to Hong Kong to shoot the film. To get into the skin of my character, I have been practising Tai Chi and other martial arts. Since I suffer from vertigo, a trainer prepared me for 11 days for a special scene that was to be enacted on an elevated platform. Then I had to cultivate a British accent.”

A big budget film, “Karna” is a dream come true for Koena. “More than it being a grand international project made with a whopping budget of Rs.100 crore, I am happy to have landed such a substantial role. It has been a new experience for me to do this special film.

“But this doesn’t mean that I am interested in seeking a prospective career in Hollywood. I know that a number of filmmakers in Bollywood are constantly upgrading their film projects by bringing technological innovations.”

Described as “Daughter of East” by Jharkhand Chief Minister Madhu Koda, Koena says the epithet suits her perfectly as she belongs to West Bengal and the newly carved State that she is popularising as an investment destination for non-resident Indians is a neighbouring one.

“I sincerely want all NRIs and people of Indian origin to visit the State because it has the best flora, fauna, weather and culture. But if you ask me queries about Jharkhand’s history then I would not be able to answer. I associate the mineral rich tribal State with Durga puja. In my childhood, I have been to Ranchi and Jamshedpur. Every actor gets a chance to promote a product or brand but here I am promoting a State.”

Despite Koena’s image of an ultra modern girl, Koena says she is a spiritual person at heart.

“Spirituality is a very relative term. It is more of a personal belief. I believe in Ma Kali and Ma Durga. Whenever I am in Mumbai I make it a point to visit the temple every Saturday. It is like a feel-good-factor. Having said that, I don’t think people who go to temples are more religious or something. At home in Kolkata, my parents worship Kali Ma.”

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