Genelia d’Souza is enjoying the fact that she has played the role of Hasini in all three language versions of the South’s mega-hit Bommarillu. The Hindi version due soon is called It’s My Life and also stars Harman Baweja. Meanwhile, the Kollywood version Santosh Subramaniam is also a big hit. The Tollywood version also starred Siddharth, and Genelia won the Best Actress award for her performance.
Mumbai-born Genelia first caught our eye down South in the Tamil version of Boys and is still a big star in Tollywood and Kollywood. This year has been a big year for her down South as she has been finishing off commitments and producing hits in a number of languages including Santosh…, Satya in Love (Kannada) and Ready (Tollywood). However, her focus is now shifting towards Mumbai, following the success of Jaane Tu…. After It’s My Life, she will be starring in Life Partner.
Is Genelia finding the move from the South to Bollywood difficult? “Although the film industries are different, my job as an actor remains the same,” she says. “It’s cinema that matters most to me, not the industries. Now I’m looking at a career here and I want to be appreciated. I’m enjoying every minute of it.”
Does she think she was lucky to have been picked for Jaane Tu…. “I don’t think I was plain lucky. I have acted in a lot of films in the South which speak of my abilities,” she explains. “Over the years, I’ve grown as an actor. It’s an achievement especially for someone like me who does not have a film background. I think I was chosen for these films simply because I fitted the bill.”
