C H I T C HAT
I never had any
apprehensions:
Zareen Khan
I
t has been over half a decade since she got her mega
launch opposite none other than Salman Khan in
‘Veer’ (2010). While she was much criticized for her
bulky frame, she attributed it to the need of the script
which required her to eat a lot of chocolates and sweets,
and appear on screen as a well-rounded princess from
the era gone by.
Circa 2015 and Zareen Khan, who has featured in a 100
crore success ‘Housefull 2’ and enjoyed a Punjabi hit in
‘Jatt James Bond’ earlier this year, is all set to change
that persona with an erotic musical thriller ‘Hate Story
3’. A couple of sizzling promos have already been unveiled and since the film belongs to the erotica genre,
it requires Zareen to indulge in skin show for screen,
something that she is not minding at all.
“I never had any apprehensions around this to begin
with as well. However, I was clear that if it is not required
then I won’t do it for the heck of it. Yes, I did carry this
whole image with me for five years – that of a princess
from ‘Veer’ who was all covered up. Industry as well as
audience always saw me in that light. Somehow, no one
offered me anything that required me to step into an ultra-glam avtar,” says Zareen.
The weight issues plagued her too.
“Yes, these talks continued to surround me. The only
impression that people had was that Zareen Khan is
over-weight. Moreover, since I was this doll like princess
in ‘Veer’, everyone just wanted to see me all covered
up,” she chuckles, “I don’t know if anyone was imagining me in any different avtar. Thank goodness that now
with ‘Hate Story 3’, perception has changed. From being
over-weight, they have started calling me better names
like sexy.”
Moreover, the very fact that she comes from a non-filmy
background meant that Zareen had to find her own way,
due to which she hasn’t had a Bollywood release since
‘Housefull 2’ (2012).
“Right now if you look at it around you, most of our actors belong to Bollywood families. They are star sons
and daughters. Even if they commit some mistake, it is
fine and they get another chance. However that thing
has played so badly on me,” rues Zareen, “When I came
in this industry, I was a newcomer. I did what I was told
to do. When that wasn’t accepted well, people didn’t
want to give me a second chance. It was very difficult.
Since I don’t have any Godfather or someone influential,
each of my decisions has to be my own and they have to
be calculated. Hate Story 3 is one such decision.”
19 | BOOM