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`I'd love to do a period film'

S. R. ASHOK KUMAR

Lara Dutta on how she keeps herself sharp and interesting.

Photo: Rajeev Bhatt.

QUALITY IS HER MANTRA: Lara Dutta.

Former Miss Universe, Goodwill Ambassador to the United Nations, popular model and actor... Lara Dutta's hands are full. Recently in Chennai, to launch a range of beauty products, she spoke at length on her commitments and the responsibilities that fame brings in its wake. Excerpts:

First things first. After `Arasatchi,' the Tamil audience has not seen you on screen. Why?

Well, I have not had good offers. It is only two years since I entered the industry and I'm not in a hurry to accept offers. Number does not matter. It is quality and I'm keen on doing films that have meaningful roles for me.

Does winning beauty contests make cinema entry an easy proposition?

Certainly. You have become a household name and the producer is spared the effort, expense and tensions of launching a new face.

Do you think looks alone define beauty?

I don't think so. In fact it is brain that reflects a personality.

Do you have any favourites among stars?

Sometimes I wish I were an actor of the 1950s or 60s when characters were etched for artistes, male or female. The modern heroine is invariably a helpless damsel in distress who looks up to a man for succour. I love Bimal Roy's classics and I have always admired Nargis and Nutan. These are the two people I'd like to emulate. Any particular role that you have done has made an impression on you? In `No Entry,' my last release, I did a character so unlike me. She is a housewife, very suspicious and loud. My effort was well appreciated. More than anything else, it was my first attempt at comedy and I enjoyed doing it. Of course my best is yet to come. I'd love to do a period film, say Jhansi Rani.

If you are given an opportunity to do something else in the industry, what would you choose?

Perhaps, I'd write a script for a film. I'm not so sure about direction that needs some training but I have a lot of story ideas, which I might develop.

What, according to you, is the basic quality of an actor?

You have to be a complete entertainer with unlimited energy. Remember you are a public figure, 24x7. Humility is very important. Think of Mr. Amitabh Bachchan. He is so humble even after reaching such great heights.

In your capacity as a star with several dimensions how do you think you can give something back to society?

I am goodwill ambassador to the United Nations, along with Shabana Azmi and Manisha Koirala. I have been with them for almost five years and I hope it lasts longer. We do a lot of work with the U.N. population fund where women's issues are concerned.

I focus on HIV/AIDS for adolescent and teens in South-East Asia. We don't go to town with it. I also did a voice over for Nicolodeon. They launched a programme called Nic 20/15 with UNICEF. They had international celebrities and mine was the only voice from India.

Do you think women actors need to change their get up to be different?

I think so. It keeps you sharp and makes work interesting.

Have you done something on these lines?

My second film, "Mumbaise Aaya Mera Dost," needed me to play a village belle. I went to Jaisalmer long before the unit got there and spent some days with a family, observed how the women talked and their body language.

For "No Entry" I did homework on a Punjabi women. These things help to give the character that extra shine.

Now in my next film `Zinda,' I'm a taxi driver and these days I spend much of my time driving cabs and practising the lingo of cab drivers.

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