Shilpa Shetty in ‘Vogue’

Shilpa Shetty in ‘Vogue’ - Misses out performance at IPL2 closing ceremony

It was our bad luck not to see Shilpa Shetty performing at IPL season 2 closing night where she was supposed to perform with Katrina Kaif and Akon.

Shilpa says, “I was just not prepared. It was an international platform, not some village nautanki. I had to be fully ready. And I just didn’t get time to rehearse. So I regretfully had to say no. But I’d rather not give anything less than my best when I’m representing my country.”

However Shilpa who is the co-owner of Rajasthan Royals says, “So what if my team wasn’t playing. I think I’m sporting enough to enjoy the game as just a part of the audience.”

Meanwhile, check out Shilpa sizzling on the latest edition of Vogue!

Shilpa’s busy 'doing nothing'

She’s all but disappeared from the big screen. Last year, the beauty’s only appearance was in a song with John Abraham and Abhishek Bachchan in Dostana, and this year doesn’t seem to be any different.

“I have ventured into a lot of things like cricket, yoga DVDs, spas, but films will be my first love. However, the fact remains that I haven’t been offered any interesting roles. The kind of work that I would like to do now or fit into is hard to come by. And the choices that are in front of me aren’t tempting enough,” admits Shilpa matter-of-factly.
Added to her woes is the arrival of a new crop of actresses who ensure that the senior lot find fewer roles coming their way. “I have done everything from comedy and action to serious films, but for how long can one keep doing the same thing? There’s something called screen-age! As a producer I understand why others choose the new crop,” she admits.

But it’s always been that for the Bollywood hottie and candidly she continues, “I could take up Big Brother, which proved to be a turning point in my life, only because I wasn’t busy with any other project. That’s the reason I never question anything. But look, I have yet carved a niche for myself without films.”

So, at the moment, Shilpa’s busy “doing nothing” in London. She’s waiting for the recession to end before she dons the producer’s hat in Bollywood. “I needed a break after the IPL,” she says, denying that she’s licking her wounds after her team’s dismal loss in the Twenty20 tournament. “Everyone wants to win, anyone who says they don’t — is lying,” says the actress. “Next season, I’ll pray harder.”

Jaane Tu Ya Jaane Na girl Manjari Fadnis in music video ???

Her ‘What’s That’ act did get her all the attention in Jaane Tu… Ya Jaane Na. However, with a blockbuster to her name, Manjari Fadnis is now moving on and looking forward to her upcoming assignments. The first of them which would be unveiled for audiences any time now is a music video for which she shot some time back.

“This is a beautiful ’sufi’ number which is sung by Krishna (of ‘Maula Mere’ - Chak De India and ‘Main Jahaan Rahoon’ - Namastey London) fame. He has cut an album and a music video has been made for one of the songs. It is a good platform for me as I am seen in Indian costumes. Also, since the video revolves around the character I enact, it does give me good visibility”, informs Manjari who made her debut as a school girl in Rok Sako To Rok Lo four years back.
“It seems like such a long time back. However, from here on I believe the journey should get into a fast track mode”, beams Manjari whose next film release would be I Am 24 where she faces the camera along with the likes of Rajat Kapoor, Ranvir Shorey, Neha Dhupia, Vijay Raaz, “It is a breezy entertainer and the comedy there is first of it’s kinds as well. It was a riot shooting for the film.”

Talking about her newfound success, Manjari goes on to exclaim, “I missed all the euphoria created by Jaane Tu… Ya Jaane Na on its release. I was stationed in Bangkok and the moment I landed in Mumbai, I could sense people looking at me strangely. Soon a young girl passed by me and said ‘Hi Meghna’ with a sweet smile. This is when I realized that the film and my character (Meghna) had caught on with people. Congratulatory calls have been coming in ever since then which by it’s sheer quantum, to be honest, is a first as I didn’t experience anything like that with Rok Sako To Rok Lo or Mumbai Salsa.

How about her now-famous ‘What’s That’ act? One hears that it is getting popular as well in the campus circuit. “And also the ‘Pappu Dance’”, laughs Manjari, “So what if I couldn’t be a part of the dance sequence, I still had a riot watching it over and over again. I am proud of the film and happy that youngsters have absorbed the flavor of the film so well. Things like ‘What’s That’, ‘Pappu Dance’ and the cool costumes that we all had worn aren’t always made with a thought; they just get made! I am happy that Jaane Tu… Ya Jaane Na is turning out to be a trendsetter of sorts.”