Marine life has suddenly caught Lara Dutta’s fancy. If she is not found sharing space with sharks underwater in her upcoming movie ‘Blue,’ she is seen deep sea diving in some of the rarest diving spots in the world which are off limits for the general public. “In ‘Blue,’ I play a marine life enthusiast. It was a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity which I was not going to let go of… As for my show, it’s too early to talk about it. It is not on Nat Geo but another environment-friendly channel. All I can say is it would require me to dive into rare spots,” says the Miss Universe 2000 title winner.
Unfazed by failure
Unfazed by the failure of ‘Billu’ at the box office earlier this year, Lara is gearing up for what’s going to be a rather eventful second half of 2009. She stars in ‘Do Knot Disturb,’ a David Dhawan film with Govinda, Riteish Deshmukh, Sohail Khan and Sushmita Sen.
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“I play a rock star with a complicated love life. She is a very energetic character and a very colourful one too. In ‘Blue,’ I am a marine life enthusiast who joins three others in search of the greatest treasures in the deepest oceans,” says the actor.
While ‘Do Knot Disturb’ was unveiled at the IIFA Awards at Macau this year, ‘Blue’ is reportedly India’s most expensive film till date, made at an estimated Rs. 100 crores, and has been directed by ad filmmaker Anthony D’Souza. Lara shares space with Sanjay Dutt, Akshay Kumar, Zayed Khan and Katrina Kaif in the film.
Besides the thrill of watching these actors underwater with 40 sharks, the film has given rise to expectations that the lead actresses will be seen donning bikinis. Lara says, “I’ve gotten fitter, the fittest I have ever been in fact, for ‘Blue.’ I love experimenting with characters so you would see me in a different avatar with every film.” Ask her about moving out of the bikini-barred status, and she plays mysterious, “I play a deep sea diver so I will wear whatever is appropriate to dive in the deep sea.”
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Lara is also shooting for another comedy film titled, ‘Housefull,’ directed by Sajid Khan and produced by Sajid Nadiadwala, which also stars Akshay Kumar, Riteish Deshmukh, Deepika Padukone and Jiah Khan. She seems to be doing only ensemble cast projects… “If the right script comes along and if it gives me my due, I will certainly take it up. When directors such as Priyadarshan, David Dhawan and Sajid Khan, who look for a woman who can hold her own and seem strong in front of the men, are casting, I am glad that I am the first one they think of.”
The actor, who gives precedence to script over director, producer and even co-actors, comes to the defence of the Hindi film industry when asked how difficult it is to make what she does believable. “You play a character in the film and not an extension of who you are. It’s up to you to make it believable and it certainly takes a lot of intelligence to pull it off and a lot of smartness to know your market in order to survive in the industry,” she explains.
Currently as news has trickled in about a song called ‘What A Bebo’ filmed on her for ‘Do Knot Disturb,’ Lara is fielding questions on actress rivalry. “Well, it’s a song in a movie and it will be a blockbuster song too, so why wouldn’t I be fine?” she signs off.