genelia bio-data

Name: GENELIA D'SOUZA Born: August 5, 1987   Birth Place: England Height: 5' 6½" (1.69 m) Nationality: Indian Religion: Christian Debut Movie: Tujhe Meri Kasam (Hindi) Education: Apostolic Carmel High School in Bandra Pet name: Jeenu, Harini

Genelia is a rage among the youth audience. Her image is that of a girl-next-door and with blockbusters likeDhee and Bommarillu, she was catapulted to one of the top actresses in South India. Genelia is just 19 as of now and turning 20 only after two months. She is now claming a good remuneration of Rs 30 lakhs. Now herMr.Medhavi is releasing and another film Ready with hero Ram is under progress. We caught up with the bubbly and chirpy actress who is exactly like what her on-screen image is. Excerpts from the interview..

From Goa to Madras, Hyderabad, Mumbai... your journey is remarkable! 
(Laughs) No, you are mistaken that I hail from Goa but I am Mangalorean, not Goan. I was born n brought up in Mumbai, where I did my schooling at the Apostolic Carmel High School in Bandra, Mumbai. I was first noticed at a family wedding, and soon after that I did my first ad with Amitabh Bachan and was then spotted by Shankar sir who was doing Boys,and the rest as they say is history.

You worked with Siddharth in Boys (2003) and then in Bommarillu (2006). Did you find any difference?

See, people do change with the time. Both of us were rank newcomers when we were doing Boys. He helped me a lot then while shooting for the film. I did some more films and then Bommarillu and things are different now. He was very nice and friendly during the shoot.

You worked with several heroes - Siddharth, Venkatesh, Sumanth, Jr. NTR, Nithin, Allu Arjun, Raja and now Ram. How do you see the difference in age groups, and how do you mould accordingly?

As an actress, I see what my role is and how I can perform, and I do not give importance to other things. At a time, a section of the media wrote a statement, reportedly from me, that I don't want to work with senior heroes, but I never said that!! ...Working with Venky, I learned a lot really. He gave me a lot of guidance, not just on appropriate attitude on the sets but also on spirituality.

You looked better in Sye than in `Bommarillu`

(Laughs) Thanks, but Sye is a different kind of film compared to Bommarillu. The looks have to go with the character. I don't like to be named a "hot babe" ...I want to known as an actress. In Sye, I was a babe and in Bommarillu, I was not. I would rather act with the face then with the body in future too. Consider Happy, or even Raam - I was mostly in salwar-kameez .

What is wrong with being known as a hot babe? In fact, in a phase of your career, you did films like Samba, Naa Alludu, Subhash Chandra Bose etc., where there was not much to do other than sing and dance with the hero.?

True, but after doing such films, I realized that such an act will not help my career. Bommarillu happened at such a time, and I was a known face not only in Telugu, but also in Tamil, Kannada, Malayalam, and in Hindi too. (Incidentally, she won her first Filmfare award for the role in Bommarillu).

I hought you'd be on a signing spree after Bommarillu! But 2007 had only one release, Dhee, which was actually a delayed release for various reasons.

Genelia: I did Raam, Chennai Kaadal, and Happy in 2006 and Dhee was also the same year, but like you said, it was delayed and thus hit the in 2007. However, it was due to other reasons that I didn't plan on having any releases in 2007. I was busy doing Mister Medhavi, the Tamil version of Bommarillu. Also, my first Kannada films is ready for release now, for which I have been shooting all of last year. I am doing a couple of too. ...I was busy all the time

Tell me about Neelakantha's film Mister Medhavi!>

Genelia: As you are aware, he won the National Award for the Best Screenplay for his film Show. It's a great opportunity to work with him, and thus I agreed to do it.

Sri: How was it working with Raja ?

Genelia: Raja is cool. We have not met much other than at the shooting. I noticed on the sets that he is good, hardworking, and helpful.

Tell me something about the role...

Genelia: All the female lead characters created by Neelakantha are strong in their characters - be it a Missamma or the lady inShow. They are real people with real emotions. Of course, my role in this film is different from the character in Missamma. The movie is about a of two people who fall in love in the middle of it. You must watch how beautifully it is executed...

Sri: How come I do not in Page 3 parties in Hyderabad?

Genelia: That's because I don't attend any! Once I am done with my work, I crash out and sleep. I do not go out a lot, but even if I do, I go out with my friends, come back, and hit the bed. Page 3 parties are not my ! I am one of the most punctual artistes on the sets. I will be always on time with make-up,hair n . In fact, in my real life, I wear regular t-shirts and jeans and not the party-kind glamorous .

What type of films do you generally watch?

Genelia: I watch just any movie! I perfectly enjoyed both Pokiri and , for example - I do not restrict myself with only certain type of films. I love any . We can learn a lot by watching, Sobhana told me earlier, and she was very right about it! .

 

Do you give importance to remuneration or script when accepting a project? What're your selection criteria like?

Genelia: Both, of course! Even if the offered remuneration was good, I rejected quite a few projects because I didn't like the script Sometimes, a director may narrate the story in a beautiful way but the script might not have been presented properly. So, after hearing the story and before starting the film, I'd like to see the complete script in English, so that I can understand it very well

What if the director is not good at English? We do have some such directors...

Genelia: The director doesn't need to have a command over English - it could just be an assistant of his. But, even if the director can narrate the same to me in Telugu, I'll be more convinced to do the film that way.

How do you choose your director?

Genelia: (Laughs) They choose me, and it's not like I can choose them. Of course, before signing a film I'd definitely know the complete script and ...you know it already!

How come you're doing only one Telugu film at present?

Genelia: I am doing Srinu Vaitla's Ready and would want to give it total concentration, Tollywood is like my home away from home, as it gave me a lot of recognition all over. I am always indebted to Telugu audience and moviemakers for that

You already worked with Jayasudha and Prakash Raj in Bommarillu. How was working with veterans like them?

Genelia: Prakash Raj is like an institution! You can learn a lot from him. It's always a treat to watch them on the sets, so that you can learn a lot by just observing them! Jayasudha gaaru was very friendly and gave me a lot of tips and shared a lot of her experiences in the filmdom.

Heard that you're doing Aamir Khan's home production as well as Priyadarshan's next!?

Genelia: True, but I cannot reveal anything more right now. You need to wait for more updates on both the projects. I am doing both, sure!