Interview: Genelia D'Souza
By: Simran Mody, India Correspondent
If all girls just want to do is have fun, then Bollywood’s buxom leading lady, Genelia D’Souza, must have had the time of her life playing a choreographer in the upcoming release, Chance pe Dance.
Starring opposite Shahid Kapoor in an energetic dance-themed film, D’Souza said, if anything, audiences trekking to the theaters this weekend to watch Chance pe Dance are in for a treat, proclaiming the movie to be fun.
“This is a fun film for sure, though there are some emotional moments as well,” she told reporters during her promotional tour of the film this week. “Of course, there is a lot of music, fun, romance and dance, but at the crux of it, Chance pe Dance stays on to be a heartwarming, feel-good musical entertainer.”
To think that D’Souza almost didn’t have this much fun on the set of Chance pe Dance — mostly because she was not the director’s first choice as the lead female role and Kapoor’s on-screen love interest.
In fact, Ken Ghosh had initially brought Jiah Khan on board as the film’s lead, even filming significant portions of the production. However, Ghosh had decided to change course, opening the door for D’Souza to dazzle audiences with her dancing acumen.
With several key scenes already shot with Khan, D’Souza seemed to have a relatively easy task ahead of her, what with footage of her predecessor readily available at her fingertips.
Alas, D’Souza avoided the footage like The Plague, opting to approach her leading role as if she were first choice and Khan was never around.
“There was no point doing so because I wanted to approach my character in a totally fresh manner,” she humbly told reporters. “The part had been rewritten anyway, so it was a new character to begin with.”
Of course, D’Souza is used to altered plans, fresh starts and rewritten futures by now. After all, her Bollywood career was nowhere to be found on the radar back in 2003, when she stumbled upon an acting career that would quickly take off.
It was in 2003 when D’Souza sent in her profile to the powers that be to try out for a commercial advertisement. Instead, those powers saw some potential in D’Souza, and before she knew it, she was starring in three films – in three different languages, no less – before the end of the year.
Debuting in the Telugu film Satyam and Tamil flick Boys, D’Souza landed her first Bollywood film toward the end of 2003 in Tujhe Meri Kasam. However, it was not until 2008 that she managed to wow audiences, delivering an adorable performance in Jaane Tu…Ya Jane Na.
In the months that passed since, D’Souza found herself being mentioned with the likes of fellow Bollywood actresses Preity Zinta and Rani Mukherjee, what with critics and fans recognizing her for her cute, bubbly personality.
That very cute, bubbly persona was what made Fanta choose her as its current brand ambassador, with the soda company ironically offering her the opportunity at Mukherjee’s expense.
Capping off her escalation to the top of Bollywood’s list of talented and intriguing personalities with her role in Ghosh’s Chance pe Dance, D’Souza says she is ultimately just playing her part and doing her best to live her life as inconspicuously as possible.
“I play Shahid’s love interest struggling to make it big in the world of dance,” D’Souza said of her character, who is a professional choreographer. “I also get to do a few jigs in the film.”
As she is doing those so-called “jigs,” D’Souza seems content with the way Ghosh rewrote her character to play up to the actress’s perceived cuteness and bubbly nature.
“If (Ghosh cast) me to add cuteness to (his) film, what’s wrong with it?” D’Souza rhetorically said when reporters asked about being cast for her adorable persona. “More than the bubbly image, audiences connect with me for my ‘girl next door’ factor. With such an image, heroines like Preity Zinta, Rani Mukerji and Kajol have gone far with memorable roles.”
This week, D’Souza hopes her role in Chance pe Dance will be quite memorable, as she said she truly believes audiences who make it out to watch the film will be “thoroughly entertained.”
The tale of a struggling actor with amazing dancing chops and his romance with an aspiring choreographer, Chance pe Dance opens worldwide on January 15th.
