Neha Hinge

Bollywood Happened Just By Chance : Neha Hinge

If fate would have willed, smart and beautiful Neha Hinge may have made her debut with Madhur Bhandarkar’s film Dil To Bachcha Hai Ji, but now she is all set to make her bow with Madhur’s friend Joe Rajan’s maiden film as a director- Luv U Soniye in which she has been teamed in the romantic lead opposite none other than Tanuj Virwani, the handsome and dashing son of actress Rati Agnihotri.

Neha confesses that she is in films today only because she had won the crown of Miss India. “When Madhur selected me as Bombay Diva, which was a part of the Miss India pageant, he told me that he would sign me on for his film Dil To Bachcha Hai Ji, but it did not materialize for reasons best known to Madhurji”, quips Neha.

How did Joe Rajan discover you I ask Neha. Pat comes the reply, “It was Madhur who had suggested to Joe that he should cast me in his film Luv U Soniye, when he told Madhur that he was all set to make his debut in films as a director with his film Luv U Soniye. Joe signed me on as the leading lady of his film even without me giving any audition. On hindsight, I think that whatever happens in life happens only for the better, because nothing can be better than a film, with which you are making your debut with a title role.”

The reason she decided to make her bow with a new production house like that of Joe Rajan and not wait till a big banner like say that of Yash Chopra offered to launch her, is that she had to start somewhere. “All that I can say with due respect is that Yash Chopra is Yash Chopra but all of us have the capacity to reach that place slowly and steadily, since Rome was not built in one day. Joe is one director, who knows exactly what he wants from his actors. Joe lets us give variations in our expressions and besides being creative, also takes ideas from each and every one on the sets, from the spot boy to the light boy.”

Neha confesses that it was not at all difficult for her to portray her character effortlessly, because in the first place, she plays a sweet and cultured young girl, who loves her family and always makes it a point to fight for what is good. To let her get into the skin of her character, Joe asked voice teacher Joy to help her now the technicalities of modulation of her voice and also subjected Tanuj and her to exercises,  which helped them build up chemistry between both of them.

Neha confesses that she is not at all a trained actor and it was for the first time that she faced the camera on the sets of Luv U Soniye. “I am the face of Pantaloon. I confess that on the first day of the shooting, I was quite scared and nervous but started enjoying the process of acting, when I got its essence. It is amusing, but the fact is that though I was nervous while giving the rehearsal, I was okay when the take was on. My first take was what you’d call in film parlance a one take”, gushes Neha.

Neha is a software engineer, who has worked for two years in Accenture, Pune and though Miss India was something that she had always yearned to be, Bollywood is something that has happened just by chance. “Though I concede that I did not ultimately act in his film, the fact that a director of the stature of Madhur Bhandarkar selected me for a part in his film Dil To Bachcha Hai ji was, by itself, a big pleasant surprise to me.”

Neha admits that her parents have always treated her like a son. “My father told me to go ahead and avail of the opportunity when the offer to act landed in my lap. Though I had heard horror stories about the casting couch in the film industry, I realized that it is not the case when I started working. I now know that it is only women who want to be exploited, get exploited in Bollywood. If you are strong, no one on earth can force you to do something that you do not want to do.”

What is your take on exposure? I ask Neha point blank. “As an actress, I certainly would love to look glamorous on the screen. I am quite confident about my body and am even ready to flaunt it.  However, if it is not required, I am not game for exposure. I am okay as far as lip-locks are  concerned and also can look hot, but please no Mallika Sherawat kind of role in films like Murder for me, because I do not want to get saddled with that kind of image as far as I am concerned.”

Neha confesses that she had turned down an offer some time back when the producer asked her to appear in a bikini in his film, because the role was not at all appealing enough for her to say yes. “If it is shot aesthetically like it was on Priyanka Chopra in Dostana or Kareena Kapoor in Tashan, I do not mind at all appearing in a bikini,” asserts Neha.

When I ask her whether she fell in love with her co-actor Tanuj while the shooting of the film was on, Neha signs off by stating that she is still single and her search for the Mr Right is on and adds, “You should not mix your personal life with your professional life.”