Woman of substance

chandigarh: true to her onscreen image - that of a strong woman who has emerged a winner despite struggle - actress renuka rana nee shahane, says she's much stronger than her roles. in fact, though she says she's been incredibly lucky she wishes to truly struggle with the script that she's writing for a hindi movie. it's inspired by my husband, she says, flashing her million-dollar smile and talking about husband ashutosh rana.he pushed me into writing it. the duo met for a project in 1998 and started chatting on the phone. though the project didn't materialise, we fell in love and got married. as to who popped the final question, it was neither. ranaji's family guru, pandit dev prabhakar shastri suggested we get married. marriage has indeed changed the lady. i always wanted to work less and am now doing just that. i am concentrating on family and am working on my script, and acting in a children's movie titled haathi ka anda. no serials for me as yet. otherwise it has made me more positive as after marriage you have someone who's with you through thick and thin - a true support. moreover, happiness has increased immensely; life away from home is horrible talking about their relationship (they were wed in may this year), renuka says, we are very similar in our thought processes, our values and we both believe in traditions. he's a traditional husband but a feminist because he supports me in everything i do. but, he speaks better than me and mixes well with people, however, more people seem to be scared of him than me! asked if she would opt for negative roles, the lady says if producers and directors have faith in her, she would love to render such as a role but admits that it would probably not go down well with crowds. considering the fact that her best asset is her smile, that's quite true. talking about her roles, the actress, who appears in the weekly kora kaagaz says, i found sailaab a very difficult role. why the lady hasn't been seen in any movie apart from hum aapke hain kaun is because all roles being offered after that were too similar. she prefers roles that offer a growth prospect - something that has a beginning, middle and end. on her second trip to the city, (she remembers eating a softy at sector 17 last time), this clinical psychologist (surprise, surprise), has been visiting chandigarh in association with vardhman, for whom she is a brand ambassador. in fact the lady learnt knitting too, to be part of the aao bune contest. and another ace up her sleeve - she's a talented singer. this is truly one couple about whom we have to ask - baazi kiski? geetika_bhandari@indiatimes.com