'At least I made people laugh'

Shilpa Shetty seems to have come of age.

Big filmmakers are running after the long-legged beauty, offering her roles that require more than a pout. Post Dhadkan, Shilpa proved she has more than sizzle. She was appreciated more than Sunjay Dutt in Mahesh Manjrekar's Hathyar, the sequel to Vaastav, while her goofy, very Sridevi-like performance in Indra Kumar's Rishtey fetched her a nomination for the Best Comedian Award.

There was a time when her gorgeous body was more talked about. Today, it is her performances.

Ram Gopal Varma has signed her for his latest production Darna Mana Hai, to be directed by his assistant Praval Pandey. Anil Kapoor insists her potential is still waiting to be tapped. Salman Khan has signed two films with her and swears by her.

She has bagged woman-oriented roles in V Shantaram's production venture Humsaaya and Aruna Raje's next.

Rumour is that she has signed up a big Hollywood film. Ask her about the venture and she shrugs, "It is a big film. It is being made by Mahmood Sipra of Far Pavilions fame. I have met them but I am not supposed to divulge any details on the project."

She is also said to be in the reckoning for another Indo-Western magnum opus. But Shilpa is not telling. Instead, she prefers to talk to Rohini Iyer about her Hindi film career.

You bagged a nomination for Best Comedian for Rishtey.

Yeah. That came as a surprise. I did not expect to be nominated for the Best Comedian. When I heard about it, it amused me. I'm glad. At least I made people laugh. (laughs)

Jokes apart, Rishtey was a learning experience. I learnt a lot from Anilji [Anil Kapoor] as well Induji [Indra Kumar]. It was the first time in my life I played such a mad character. When Induji told me I had to play a kolan [a Maharashtrian fisherwoman] in the film, I completely freaked out.
You reminded me of Sridevi in the film.

You are kidding, right? My God, that's the best compliment anyone can give me. Sridevi is my biggest inspiration. She is my favourite actress. I have grown up watching her films.

Her comic timing was amazing. Remember Chaalbaaz? If I can achieve even one-fourth of her comic timing, I consider myself very lucky.

Were you upset when both Rishtey and Badhaai Ho Badhaai fared badly at the box-office?

Hits and flops are part and parcel of films. Of course, I expected them to do well.

On the plus side, I am happy my performances were appreciated. Today, I have come to a stage where substance is all that matters. I am looking for roles that challenge me.

Dhadkan was the turning point in my career. I'm lucky to have got a film like Dhadkan. It was a film that made people sit up and take notice of me as an actress.

You have notched up an impressive line up of films.

I'm very careful about the films I sign. This year I am only doing Ram Gopal Varma's Darna Mana Hai, V Shantaram's production Humsaaya, Puneet Issar's film with Salman Khan and Aruna Raje's next.

Right now, I am far too busy completing these films. I have still not finalised the details of that project.

It is a very interesting subject. When the time comes, I will talk about it. Till then, I'd rather let my work speak for me.