It felt as if I had become a superstar overnight and at such a young age, it felt like an alien concept for someone who had never dreamt of being a part of this industry. However, I was not very keen on acting even after Chak De! India but started getting good offers and went with the flow," smiles Chitrashi, who is in Vadodara to shoot for Palchhin.

However, she adds, "I have been playing hockey since I was a kid and will always be associated with the game. I have still got the skills!" As talk veers towards films again, she says, "When Chak De.

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happened, I had no clue what was happening around me. You may not believe it, but I didn't know anything about this profession, and had never even heard of institutes like National School of Drama.

Working with Madhur Bhandarkar in Fashion actually made me realize that I can act. It was a turning point of sorts.

And now, I feel I pretty much belong here!" She still has some endearing childish traits in her, which comes to the fore when she says with a laugh, "After one week of shooting in Vadodara, when no one offered me Gujarati food, maine sets pe bahot drama kiya! I love Gujarati food, especially dhokla. I find this Gujarati way of using 'ben' and 'bhai' of addressing people really sweet.

" Chitrashi, who has also done reality shows like Iss Jungle Se Mujhe Bachao and Comedy Circus 2, feels, "Being more of a spontaneous actor, comedy wasn't easy for me but I loved doing Iss Jungle..

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." Off-screen, she describes herself as "a positive and bindaas girl.

Thankfully, my parents are very liberal. My father was always very secure about me because he knows I am mature enough to handle my career.

Besides, I have always been very independent girl who does what she believes in." (less)

With Riteish around, it was always a case of laughter riots on the sets. He is just unbelievable and can have you in splits.

Genelia was also very sweet to work with. I have also worked for an as-yet-untitled film slated to release soon.

" In Vadodara to shoot for a film called Palchhin, Chitrashi shares, ", "I play a very bold character and it's a film about bonding and relationships. Working with Sudhanshu Shekhar Jha (the director) has been a pleasure because he treats me like his own daughter.

As for the city, I just loved visiting the Laxmi Vilas palace. It was an experience of a lifetime! I was not very keen on acting even after Chak De!but started getting good offers and went with the flow.

Now that things are going well, I feel I pretty much belong here." (less)

After a largely successful career in the modelling world, he went on doing daily soaps like Kyunki Saans Bhi Kabhi Bahu Thi, Kavyanjali, Kasauti Zindagi Ki. Pradeep 's new release Jodi Breakers was with south superstar Madhavan and sexy Bipasha Basu where he played a role of a boxer .

We talk time him on the film and more..

. How has the journey been so far? I started my journey as a model and have been a successful model for quite some time.

I have been walking the ramp and have even done television commercials where I have worked with Aamir Khan and Katrina Kaif. My modelling days taught me a lot and I can never forget them.

And also one can't deny the fact that modelling is good money and one needs that for the struggle in the industry. How did Television happen? As a creative person one should always look forward, so after doing modelling I was thinking of what next? Then Ekta Kapoor gave me a chance in Kyunki Saans Bhi Kabhi Bahu Thi where I played the character of Tushar and then later on I had worked in Kavyanjali and Kasauti Zindegi Ki - in my both shows I have played Shlok and Shravan respectively and I enjoyed my stint on television.

Working on television can gives an actor lots of creativity, one can learn the patience and dedication. Working on a daliy format was quite challenging I must say.

So it was quite obvious for you to shift to films? Yes as I wanted to pursue a career in films for some time. My film journey satrted with Sudhir Mishra's critically acclaimed film Khoya Khoya Chand where I played the role of a young hero.

The movie was based on the film industry. Later on I have done films Ek, The Power Of One, Fashion and Ajab Prem Ki Gajab Kahani.

In Fashion though I had a very small appearance as Kangana Ranaut's crazy boyfriend, it had a good impact. In Ajab Prem Ki Gajab Kahani played the role of Tony Breganza whom Katrina was about to marry.

I am happy that the roles which I have done so far are not easy to forget and most importantly the directors with whom I had worked like Sudhir Mishra, Raj Kumar Santoshi and Madhur Bhandarkar are all marvelous. I feel blessed to have worked with them.

Your experience in the film Jodi Breakers? Bipasha Basu and Madhavan are great human beings and it was a pleasant experience for me to work with them. For Madhavan I can say he is a selfless actor who never used to give importance to his screen space.

He was always worried about the final outcome of any scene. He put in a lot of effort on the quality of a scene.

I find this to be a unique quality he has (less)

It was a game between 'Palchhin XI' and 'Baroda CA-XI', and there was some good cricket plus entertainment on offer for viewers. Actor Chandrachur Singh was at his attacking best and played some wonderful shots much to the delight of the crowd, while Sanjay Suri wasn't far behind either.

In between, petite beauty Chitrashi Rawat of 'Chak De! India' fame, who happens to be a national level hockey player, was seen trying her hands at bowling leg spin! Well, it looks like the likes of Amit Mishra and Piyush Chawla have some 'beautiful' competition on their hands! Actors Shreya Narayan and Auroshikha Dey were also seen cheering for their team and also trying their hands at batting. An enjoyable and fun-filled occasion, no doubt.

The match was followed by lunch and then there was a prize distribution ceremony in the hands of Samarjitsinh Gaekwad, scion of the erstwhile royal family of Baroda (less)

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or in this case, 'southward'! Now before you imagine she's doing a film with Rajinikanth or Kamal Haasan, allow us to fill you in. After playing Mrs Subramaniyam in RA.

One, she recently experienced a deja vu of sorts while filming a commercial. On the sets, ad director Pradeep Sarkar wanted her to learn a couple of Tamil lines for the commercial.

Without a second thought, Bebo started leaning the 'illes' and 'podeys'. Well, now that you've got going, why don't you try your hand at south films, Bebo? The race down south is pretty hot! Ask Deepika and Katrina.

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For more Bollywood news and gossip, keep watching Planet Bollywood News every night at 7 pm, only on zoOm - India's No 1 Bollywood channel (less)

After appearing in several ad films and music videos, she made her debut in B-town with Vidhu Vinod Chopra's home production in 2005. "I was doing ad films and I had signed quite a few South films but then I went through a phase of being called jinxed because my first South film was stopped midway and then other directors threw me out of their films.

I started doing music videos but Dada (director Pradeep Sarkar) had told me he would make a film with me," Vidya told reporters here, last night at the Vidhu Vinod Chopra festival. "He (Pradeep Sarkar) went to Chopra (Producer) with the script and Chopra wanted a bigger star but he also said if I am able to show that I can do the role then they will take me.

I gave over 60 tests right from Indian look, western look, curly hair, straight hair, song, emotional scene, etc. I kept doing it but later I was fed up as I was not aware if they were really going to take me or not," Vidya said.

"And the moment I gave up was the time when I got the film," 34-year-old actress recalled. Producer Vidhu Vinod Chopra made her undergo gruelling tests for the role of Lalita, till she got it right.

"We tested her 60-65 times. After a few tests I saw her looking at the camera and abusing me.

The fact that she was desperate to do the film, it showed in those 60-65 tests. But when she did not give a damn was the time when she performed.

If you are desperate for something you won't get it," Chopra said. "Vidya became Vidya Balan when she stopped caring.

I am happy that she sustained those 65 odd tests and did not give up and look where she is today," he said. The Dirty Picture star also revealed that even director Pradeep Sarkar, made her do 28 takes to capture an emotional moment in the song Raat Humari Toh .

Parineeta besides Vidya, also starred Saif Ali Khan and Sanjay Dutt in pivotal roles and was a hit at the box office. PVR Cinemas, in association with Chopra has organized a first of its kind retrospective of his films as a tribute to mark his completion of 30 years in the film industry.

On the second day of the fest when Parineeta was screened, those present on the occasion included Vidya, Raima Sen, Pradeep Sarkar, cinematographer Natarajan Subramaniam and music director Shantanu Moitra among others. Tweet (less)

After appearing in several ad films and music videos, she made her debut in B-town with Vidhu Vinod Chopra's home production in 2005. "I was doing ad films and I had signed quite a few South films but then I went through a phase of being called jinxed because my first South film was stopped midway and then other directors threw me out of their films.

I started doing music videos but Dada (director Pradeep Sarkar) had told me he would make a film with me," Vidya told reporters here, last night at the Vidhu Vinod Chopra festival. "He (Pradeep Sarkar) went to Chopra (Producer) with the script and Chopra wanted a bigger star but he also said if I am able to show that I can do the role then they will take me.

I gave over 60 tests right from Indian look, western look, curly hair, straight hair, song, emotional scene, etc. I kept doing it but later I was fed up as I was not aware if they were really going to take me or not," Vidya said.

"And the moment I gave up was the time when I got the film," 34-year-old actress recalled. Producer Vidhu Vinod Chopra made her undergo gruelling tests for the role of Lalita, till she got it right.

"We tested her 60-65 times. After a few tests I saw her looking at the camera and abusing me.

The fact that she was desperate to do the film, it showed in those 60-65 tests. But when she did not give a damn was the time when she performed.

If you are desperate for something you won't get it," Chopra said. "Vidya became Vidya Balan when she stopped caring.

I am happy that she sustained those 65 odd tests and did not give up and look where she is today," he said. The Dirty Picture star also revealed that even director Pradeep Sarkar, made her do 28 takes to capture an emotional moment in the song Raat Humari Toh .

Parineeta besides Vidya, also starred Saif Ali Khan and Sanjay Dutt in pivotal roles and was a hit at the box office. PVR Cinemas, in association with Chopra has organized a first of its kind retrospective of his films as a tribute to mark his completion of 30 years in the film industry.

On the second day of the fest when Parineeta was screened, those present on the occasion included Vidya, Raima Sen, Pradeep Sarkar, cinematographer Natarajan Subramaniam and music director Shantanu Moitra among others. Tweet (less)

"When we thought of Parineeta , I immediately thought of a face like Aishwarya Rai. The character of the girl is like two men fall in love with her, so the heroine has to be bigger.

But Pradeep Sarkar (director) told me about her (Vidya) I was like let me see what she can do," Chopra told reporters here, last night. "But then we tested and tried her (Vidya) and she cleared it," he said.

Parineeta was adapted from 1914 Bengali novella of the same name by Sarat Chandra Chattopadhyay. The film starred Vidya, Saif Ali Khan and Sanjay Dutt in pivotal roles.

Talking about other roles -- Shekar that was essayed by Saif Ali Khan and Girish, played by Sanjay Dutt, Chopra said, "I had called up Sanjay saying there is a role for you in my film and he agreed. We wanted the character of Girish (Sanjay) to be bigger than Shekar (Saif Ali Khan).

" Also, Rekha, a yesteryear actress had a cameo performance in a night club as a singer in this film. "For this cameo we went to who's-who of Bollywood but then we realised it has to be someone who is a classic diva and who better than her (Rekha).

"I had gone to meet her (Rekha) after Chopra had spoken to her about the appearance. It was fantastic meeting her.

She does her own styling, hair, make-up, photography. Even for the song she had valuable inputs to provide.

It was amazing and we had a wonderful time working with her," director Pradeep Sarkar said. Tweet (less)

"When we thought of Parineeta , I immediately thought of a face like Aishwarya Rai. The character of the girl is like two men fall in love with her, so the heroine has to be bigger.

But Pradeep Sarkar (director) told me about her (Vidya) I was like let me see what she can do," Chopra told reporters here, last night. "But then we tested and tried her (Vidya) and she cleared it," he said.

Parineeta was adapted from 1914 Bengali novella of the same name by Sarat Chandra Chattopadhyay. The film starred Vidya, Saif Ali Khan and Sanjay Dutt in pivotal roles.

Talking about other roles -- Shekar that was essayed by Saif Ali Khan and Girish, played by Sanjay Dutt, Chopra said, "I had called up Sanjay saying there is a role for you in my film and he agreed. We wanted the character of Girish (Sanjay) to be bigger than Shekar (Saif Ali Khan).

" Also, Rekha, a yesteryear actress had a cameo performance in a night club as a singer in this film. "For this cameo we went to who's-who of Bollywood but then we realised it has to be someone who is a classic diva and who better than her (Rekha).

"I had gone to meet her (Rekha) after Chopra had spoken to her about the appearance. It was fantastic meeting her.

She does her own styling, hair, make-up, photography. Even for the song she had valuable inputs to provide.

It was amazing and we had a wonderful time working with her," director Pradeep Sarkar said. Tweet (less)

Thousands of students gathered to catch a glimpse of the stars and watch them perform. Even though the stars reached the venue two hours late, they were given a warm welcome when they reached.

As per the normal procedure, the cast and crew sat on the stage, interacted with the students and gave autographs. They also spoke about their film, requesting the students to go and watch it 'first day first show'.

Responding to the cheers from the students, Taz from the band Stereo Nation sang one song from the film and danced. However, the minute his performance ended, the stars got up from the stage and left.

Ankur, the event organizer says, "According to the contract provided to us by the production house Bhaggyashri Production, all the actors and singers were to give an hour long live performance. We even have written communication from them.

But the students felt disappointed when Udita and Sofia left the stage only after 15 minutes unexpectedly. And when we asked them, nobody gave us a satisfactory answer and left the venue.

" Bouncers hired by the event company even tried to stop Udita's car for about 10 minutes, and didn't allow her to go, finally Lalit Kumar Saraogi, director of the college had to intervene in the matter. "We were assured of a proper one-hour performance by the event organizers, including one special performance on an item number each by Sofia and Udita.

But they just came on stage for a few minutes, interacted with the students and left. Though they did shake a leg with the students, but that was only for a minute," informs Sunita Rawat, vice-principal and event convener.

Distributor Manoj Nandwana, who accompanied the crew on their visit to the college, however, denied any such incident. He said, "Even an actor like SRK does not perform for an hour, though he charges `2 crore for a performance.

Then how can they expect Udita or Sofia to perform for an hour." When asked about the offer letter that confirms an hour long hour performance by the stars, Nandwana denied it by saying, "Aisa koi agreement nahi hua tha.

" When we contacted Rajeev Singh, the actor from Jaipur who is playing the lead in the film, he said, "I came to know about it only when I came back to the hotel. I think there was some confusion and arguments were going on between the producers and organisers.

But as far as I know, we were only informed about 15 minute appearance." Following the ruckus, the organizers cancelled the cast and crews return tickets to Mumbai and are now planning to take a legal action against the production house.

And this was not just in Jaipur, the same happened in Ahmadabad as well, where the cast did the same on February 18. "The cast was invited by Narayan Resorts to perform on February 18 in Ahmadabad.

About 800 people, including club members with their families gathered for the performance. But it led to utter confusion and disappointment when the crew left within 10 minutes without any performance," says Janak Pareek of the event company Solutions Global (less)