“At first I was hesitant to play a behenji particularly since this is my debut film but I'd be a fool if I'd rejected ‘Aisha',” says Amrita Puri, who will be making her foray into Bollywood with the much-anticipated Anil Kapoor-Rhea Kapoor produced film “Aisha”.
An adaptation of Jane Austen's novel “Emma”, the cast of “Aisha” has Sonam Kapoor in the lead, opposite Abhay Deol. Ira Dubey, Cyrus Sahukar and Lisa Haydon are among the others who will be starring in the movie.
Amrita says: “The plot revolves around Aisha who thinks everyone's business is her business. Aisha comes across a small town girl, Shefali Thakur, played by me. Aisha gives this behenji a complete makeover. Aisha then plays cupid, trying to set Shefali up with different guys.”
Amrita Puri has modelled for a host of ads and also has a background in theatre.
This probably has a little do to with her wanting to be cast opposite theatre veteran Naseeruddin Shah. “I have no qualms about age here. After all, it's just a number, right?” she quips.
Stating this isn't the kind of debut she'd always hoped for, Amrita contends that she's got more than she expected.
“Even the way I landed a role in the film was quite astonishing. It started with getting a message on Facebook one day regarding auditions for the role. I found it appealing and sent my portfolio to the casting agent. After a round of auditions, I was in.”
Despite being a literature graduate, Amrita discloses she's never been a fan of Jane Austen's works. “But the script of ‘Aisha' was alluring,” she says.
While she doesn't say much about her co-star Sonam Kapoor except for a general statement “it was fun working with so many youngsters”, Amrita is all praise for Abhay Deol. “He's the funniest, most chilled out guy to work with.”
Transformation
Currently busy promoting her film, Amrita tries to catch up on a quick read whenever possible. “When shooting for ‘Aisha' wound up, I also spent a lot of time working on my diction. My Hindi needs to improve,” she chuckles.
Emphasizing that she won't be talking about new projects till the release of “Aisha” this weekend, Amrita Puri, whose debut venture sees her character morph from a simpleton into a PYT, hopes her small beginning in Bollywood will be a stepping stone to greater success in filmdom.
