This story is from August 21, 2007

Sameera loves being a glam doll

Deepali Dhingra / TNN / Aug 21, 2007, 00:00 IST

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Sameera is all set to fly off to Toronto where two of her films will be screened during a film festival.

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Sameera Reddy (TOI Photo)Sameera Reddy shows her true colours.
Her bags are packed and she’s ready to go! Yes, Sameera Reddy is getting ready to fly off to Toronto for the Toronto Film Festival scheduled to begin on September 8. Buddhadeb Dasgupta’s Bengali film Me Iyasim Amar Madhubala and Mira Nair’s short film on AIDS migration are both slated to be shown there and Sameera’s on a high.
Reason? Well, the dusky actress stars in both! “This month has been wonderful. These two films are going for the Toronto Film Festival and Kaalpurush has bagged a National Award — the timing couldn’t be more perfect,” gushed Sameera.
With Kaalpurush, Sameera has managed to shut up critics who had slotted her only as a glamorous actress. “It's really sad when actors get slotted,” said Sameera, “I think all of us girls are good actresses and just need to be given the right chance.”And for Sameera, the right chance came along with this film, where she finally got the chance to prove her acting talent.

“I remember when dada (Buddhadeb Dasgupta) approached me for the role, it was totally unbelievable for me!” recalled Sameera, adding, “It is the director who has the vision to transform a glam doll into an actress.” But did she not question him why he chose her for the role?
“I am a fan of his work, so when I was offered the role, I was so taken aback that I just grabbed it!” she laughed. The film required her to portray the intense emotions of a young woman who’s trying to cope with the fact that her marriage is a failure. “The greatest compliment for me was when dada compared me to Smita Patil,” she smiled.
So with this role, does she feel that her responsibility towards the audience has increased? “Well, it has definitely made me a thinking actor. Now the responsibility is to deliver what the audience needs,” she said, but in the same breath added, “That doesn’t mean I condone my jhatak matak roles. I love being a glam doll! I just have to balance those kind of roles with serious roles.” But even though the actress is being appreciated down South, in Bollywood, she still has to deliver a solid hit.
“Well, Taxi No. 9,2,11 was a hit,” Sameera disagreed, “And I consider Musafir a turning point in my career. I believe that slow and steady wins the race. Things don’t change overnight and I’m positive about about where I’m headed.”
And as any other glam actress in Bollywood, Sameera too has had her share of controversies — whether it was her link-up with NTR Junior or her alleged affair with Sanjay Gupta.
“It’s something an actor has to live with,” she said philosophically, when asked if she thinks she is controversy’s favourite child. “No, I think this happens with every actor. My way of dealing with this is neither to agree to them or deny them,” she said. Sameera has recently admitted to seeing Mumbai-based Shamshur Lalani. “I don’t like talking about my private life. I would rather talk about my work,” she said firmly.
And it’s work, work and more work for this dusky actress, what with typical Bollywood masala fare like Race and One, Two, Three in her kitty too. “The satisfaction you get from doing an art film is something else completely but at the same time, I love commercial cinema too!” said Sameera.

About the Author

Deepali Dhingra

Deepali Dhingra, senior copy-editor-cum-correspondent at The Times of India, covers stories related to Bollywood, television and music. When she isn’t working, she loves her cuppa hot coffee and prefers to curl up with a book.

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