• Home
• /
• Entertainment

Preity's pretty picture for 2007

PREITY ZINTA is one of those people you can't help but like. The dimpled smile, the straightforward no-nonsense attitude and the child-like good looks, Preity packs a powerful punch. Last year, she was seen in Kabhi Alvida Naa Kehna (KANK)...

but lately Preity seems to be going a little easy on her career. We dig deep to find out more about what's happening in the petite actress's life and come up with some interesting tidbits.

Like the fact that after the tsunami experience, Preity had a year and a half of not wanting to do any acting at all. But we'll come to that later. First we need to know how 2007 seems different from last year. "It hasn't started on a good note. I lost my dog, but I think some change has come within me and that will reflect in the kind of films I am doing. The announcements will begin in a week or 10 days."

This year, Preity is reading up different kinds of scripts and is being offered different roles. "I feel like I'm a newcomer again. Because suddenly I am looking at different scripts and roles and thinking should I do this or should I try that?" she says.

Looks like this year is set to be an exciting one. But last year wasn't all that loud. Only KANK and Jaaneman featured Preity. "KANK did shake me up. Karan (Johar) didn't allow me to much body movement or expressions in the film and that was a great learning experience," she says of her role in KANK. One thing you can't help but notice from her career graph is that Preity has done quite a few films with Yashraj and Dharma. "I have done 26-27 films so far, and of those Veer Zaara, Kal Ho Na Ho, Salaam Namaste, Jhoom Barabar Jhoom and KANK were with Yashraj and Dharma. I have done 21 films outside these banners," she points out. But Preity can't deny she has a soft corner for Yashraj and Dharma. "Yes, a film does make a difference to me if it's from Yashraj and Dharma because I know they will take care of me. They're brilliant producers and I am emotionally attached to them," comes the candid confession.

The same holds true for Karan Johar. "I am very attached to Karan. I love him with all my heart. He's a wonderful producer, a wonderful director and I have immense respect for Yash Chopra. I have enjoyed a great working relationship with them, like I have had with a lot of other producers and directors."

Coming back to her assignments this year, Preity is in a greater mood to experiment. Why the change? "Reinvention has to come from within you. I got too stuck with what happened in the tsunami. To me it sounded very frivolous when people said 'Oh so sad that happened', and then went on to talk about other things. Because I was there, I lost friends in that and it did make a difference to me. I had a lot of things playing in my head. But now I am over it. What doesn't kill you only makes you stronger."

So now what's she looking at? "Well I try to keep my choices conventional because my unconventional is too unconventional. Now I feel that I don't have to prove anything to anyone. I have succeeded and done well for myself. So let me do something that challenges me." Proving reminds us that Preity had sued a Mumbai tabloid for defamation.

What does the actress feel about media intrusion and yellow journalism? "I will refrain from comment on that but let me give you an example. I was reported to have been present at Shah Rukh Khan's New Year party. But my passport clearly shows I was in Colorado in the US. So I don't see how I could be in two places. Which is not to say that every media person is bad. There are many journalists I look up to and I think they are fantastic. Gossip is fine as long as it's true. If it isn't I have a problem with that."