Success has finally come to the actress who started off with the lukewarm
Aladin followed by disastrous
Jaane Kahan Se Aayi Hai. “It’s been a long and patient journey,” she begins. “
Aladin
was a good launch pad; unfortunately it didn’t do well at the box
office. The industry can be ruthless if your film doesn’t do well, or if
you don’t have the right friends, or hang out with cool people. But now
with
Murder 2 being a success, I’ve noticed a change in people’s attitude,” says the actor who will appear in the Tamil film
Mankatha.
She knew the role in the Mahesh Bhatt's thriller
Murder 2
was small. “In fact, when I heard the narration I liked the other
girl’s (played by Sulagna Panigrahi) role.” While her sexiness is the
USP of her role in
Murder 2, she doesn’t fear being stereotyped
in similar roles. “Honestly, I don’t think I’m conventionally
beautiful. I can be glamorous with make-up, hair and clothes. But I’m
average looking.
“At times, I look ugly too. There are many
girls out there who are stunning. So I’ll have to depend on my acting
skills to stay in the game,” she observes. “I need to be comfortable in
front of the camera before moving into experimental roles. Though
Murder 2 was
experimental in a way, some scenes demanded performance. That scared
me. I don’t know how good an actor I am, I’ve never been to a drama
school. But I don’t want to be dubbed a bad actor.”
The actress
has her sights set on bigger and better stuff. But she’s practical too.
She knows her limitations and yet she’s ready to go beyond them, she
tells me when I enquire if she sees herself portraying a character like
Rani’s in
Black or Kareena’s in
Omkara. “Maybe the
sexy image was needed to carry my career forward,’’ she reasons. ‘‘I see
myself depicting stronger characters in the future. But yes, it will
scare me to death to do a performance like Rani’s. But I guess with
preparation I’ll pull it off.” She wants to work with Aamir Khan and
that’s not surprising. “I’ve worked with him in a commercial. I’m in awe
of Aamir. I like his vision, his take on cinema and how he executes it.
I like Vishal Bhardwaj’s work too. I like quirkiness in directors.”
With
her family back in Sri Lanka, Jacqueline has slowly found her groove in
Mumbai. “My family worries a lot about me. They know staying in Mumbai
all alone is not easy,” she says. “If I belonged to this country or if I
were comfortable with the language, things would have been different.
I’m 25 now but I feel I’m so much older because of all I have gone
through, tackling so many issues.
Growing up fast“I
manage my career, travel on my own and pay my own taxes. But all this
has helped me mature as a person, become more aware.” The ex Miss Sri
Lanka confides her journey has been an eye opener. “There have been ups
and down, stress and respite, happiness and sadness too. It’s a
difficult industry to be in if you don’t have someone to fall back upon,
someone guarding you or protecting you. It can make you vulnerable. At
the same time your success is sweeter, if you’ve done it on your own.”
She adds, “I can’t share my feelings with my parents because they
wouldn’t understand. And you can’t depend on people you work with
either. You can only trust yourself. I realised that things eventually
fall into place.”
She’s cautious enough not to trample on
anyone’s toes or hurt anyone’s ego. ‘‘You don’t want to do anything
which will jeopardise your career. There are people in position who can
make others turn against you and make things difficult for you. You do
feel like a victim then. It’s difficult not to make enemies in the
industry. You have to protect yourself.”
Jacqueline denies ever
having encountered the casting couch. “Is it a myth?” she counter
enquires. “I’ve experienced no such thing. What helped me was I got
Aladin
soon after coming to India.” She however adds, “As much as such things
happen, it can also arise from a person who’s desperate enough for work.
I knew it was not worth going into that zone. Those who intend to take
advantage realise this especially with the media being so active now. It
would be too much of a risk.” She adds, “I’ve always had work. I never
had to run for money. And even if I were going through difficult times,
I’d never exude that kind of a vibe.”
She goes on to say she’s a
private person. “I’m not best friends with anyone. I’m a little
cautious. I prefer keeping things to myself.” She’s fond of her industry
friends though. “I’m friends with everyone I’ve worked with — Riteish
Deshmukh (
Na Jaane Kahan Se Aayi Hai), Sujoy Ghosh (director of her debut
Aladin), Sonal Sehgal (
Jaane Kahan Se Aayi Hai …), Milap Zaveri (director of
Jaane Kahan…).
They’re people I enjoy spending time with.’’ She however is miffed by
the stories that appear about her in print. “This lovely story was
written about Sujoy buying me a car. Where the hell do such stories come
from?” she asks exasperatedly. “If it’s just about me then I can handle
it but if there are other people involved it affects me. It makes
things so unnecessarily uncomfortable. There’s no chance to explain
yourself or clear the air. But if it’s a story with someone I know well,
like Sujoy or Riteish (Deshmukh), we laugh it off.”
Rumour has it...A
lot has also been spoken about her friendship with Riteish. “Ritesh is
very special to me. I made my debut opposite him. He was in my second
film too. Apparently, he has also helped her in her career. “Riteish is
someone who respects the fact that I like to get things on my own merit.
I’ve never got anything on his recommendation. When a song in
Housefull (
Apni toh jaise taise)
was offered to me, he had no idea. I called him up and informed him. I
wouldn’t like it if he interfered or stuck his nose into my work. I know
what I am worth and how hard I have worked. It’s nice that he respects
that.”
