She may not have been the centre of attention, but she was certainly the belle of the ball. Dressed in a specially designed Roberto Cavalli creation, Bollywood’s own Isha Koppikar was a judge at the Miss Universe contest in Vietnam this year, which is expected to be broadcast in 170 countries and seen by an audience of up to a billion people. Other judges included Donald Trump, rap star Mel B and pinup girl Nadine Velazquez. Jerry Springer hosted the show.
Isha, whom many of her fans believe could knock the spots off a score or more Miss Universes, has made over forty movies and is currently enjoying a big year in Bollywood. A number of top releases lined up include Hello, Hello Darling, Har Pal, Shabri and Ek Vivah Aisa Bhi. This follows a difficult year in 2007 of shelved or restricted projects. On the advice of her numerologist, she has changed her name to Eesha and this seems to have worked.
After making many movies in Tollywood, she has perhaps been best known until now in Bollywood for her item number ‘Khallas’ in the movie Company – giving her the title The Khallas Girl. However, this is to underestimate the range of her work. She has made notable appearances in the horror movie Darna Mana Hai; as a stunning femme fatale in Inteqam; was jaw-droppingly attractive in the lesbian thriller Girlfriend; the whodunit 36 China Town; and the perfect gangster’s moll in Don.
Isha is a fitness fanatic and attends daily workout sessions at 5.30am. Isha is a state-level basketball player and has trained in hapkido and taekwondo, the Korean martial arts. She’s also a smart little cookie being a graduate in Life Sciences.
Isha was recently left puzzled and angry when a private concert she had been engaged to do in Jaipur was cancelled at the last minute, leaving 2000 fans unhappy and leaving Isha locked in her prep trailer for five hours until it was safe for her to leave.
The new Miss Universe is Dayana Mendoza from Venezuela, who would look pretty good in a Bollywood movie – or in anything in fact. A strong, commanding beauty, she says her inner strength comes from having been kidnapped 18 months ago, which has helped her to learn how to cope with stressful situations.
