Born into a star-laden family – her mother is Hema Malini, her father is Dharmendra and her brothers are Sonny and Bobby Deol – life has not always been easy for Esha Deol in Bollywood. Soon to be seen in the movie Hijack, she has recently taken a year off and has been practicing kick boxing to keep in shape.
How does she feel about her famous mother? “Mom comes across as a person who is very strict, but she is the coolest mom,” she says, “As a teenager, I was quite bindaas. I would be out dancing and partying till the wee hours. Mom would just keep a watch on my activities, but she never nagged or questioned me.”
What type of movies would she like to do now? “I want to do women-centric roles now. I would love to work in films like Khuda Kay Liye, Taare Zameen Par and Aamir.”
Her first big hit was Dhoom, and this was followed by Kaal with SRK. She was also seen in No Entry and Dus, so 2005 was a big year for her. It was in last year’s Darling, however, that the quality of her acting first came to be fully recognized. As one critic said, “Esha Deol is excellent in a role that’s nothing short of a challenge. It would’ve boomeranged had it been entrusted to an inferior actor, but Esha is in terrific form here. This should be the turning point in her career.”
