Simi on the hotseat

The late Raj Kapoor was obsessed with the ‘lady in white’ image but there’s another lady who comes to mind as soon as you say that – Simi Garewal!
But the actress/hostess is making news for appearing in a black and silver dress for the opening episode of her new show India’s Most Desirable. “I’ve been getting text messages from friends expressing their shock!” she laughs.Excerpts from an interview...
After so many years, you have worn a black outfit in your show. Why the transition from your trademark white?
There’s a little history behind that. I had seen this dress and absolutely fell in love with it. I knew that Anamika Khanna is the designer and I rang her up and said that I want to wear it for the show. I also asked her to design all my clothes for the show. The transition is only because the dress was so pretty. When I saw my reflection in the mirror, I couldn’t recognize myself! (laughs) But in the rest of the episodes, I have worn white, with a touch of some other colours.
Was it done to create a hype, or some sort of publicity gimmick as the show was launching?
No, there’s nothing planned about this. It was a pretty dress and I thought it deserved to be worn. I don’t go out seeking publicity.
Since the last season and now, there are so many chat shows that have come up that are fun, whereas yours has always been high on the emotional quotient. How do you think the audience will accept it now?
I agree, times have changed. But this is a complete reinvention of the earlier format. Here, there will be place for emotion as the audience will get to know the person on-on-one. But in the later segments, there are a whole lot of fun and games planned. This will also be a fun show. But the kind of fun you were reffering to is gossip. But I feel you cannot get to know a person through gossip. If you desire the person, you deserve to know the person.
The earlier seasons saw a lot of your contemporaries whereas the new one showcases the younget lot. How would you relate to them?
Even in the earlier format, there were lots of young people who had done well for themselves. I’ve never had a problem relating to people. Age has never come in between. And this new generation is so cool, so educated. They speak their mind and heart.
What do you think of the current chat shows?
I’ve been most disappointed with them. All of them look like they’ve been copied from international shows or Karan’s show. I wish they would do something original.
So many of your contemporaries are making a comeback in films. Have you considered it?
Surprisingly, I’ve had people offering me films all these years. But unless the film is so god or the role is so special, why should I give up my time? But I‘ve had an offer that I’ve liked. I liked the story. We were supposed to shoot in May-June but this show came up, so we might begin in Oct-Nov sometime.