girl': Koena Mitra

New Delhi, Nov 30: To a curious onlooker in Bollywood, the tag of a 'glamour girl' would seem like a 'stroke of good luck' for a newcomer looking to find his or her bearings in the film industry what with the 'sex symbol' image bringing in its wake big banner films featuring a host of established stars.

More so for Koena Mitra, whose item girl acts in Ramgopal Verma's 'Road' and Sanjay Gupta's 'Musafir' have almost overnight catapulted her to the top rung of 'glamour girls' in Bollywood.

''I have been in the industry for almost two years now. Still, I find myself slotted in the image of a 'glamour girl' or sex symbol', a tag which stuck to me after item girl roles in 'Road' and 'Musafir. Infact, four out of five roles offered to me everyday are for a glamour girl,''Koena told UNI here.

With her new film, Sangeeth Sivan's 'Apna Sapna Money Money', a comedy featuring her alongside Ritiesh Deshmukh, Rajpal Yadav, Suneil Shetty and Anupam Kher, Koena is hoping to establish herself in a different image. The film, which released across the country on November 10, features the dusky Bengali beauty as a Catholic middle class girl.

The film, a madcap comedy on the lines of 'Malaamal Weekly' and 'Kya Kool Hai Hum' is a far cry from her glamorous portrayals in her earlier films.

''What made me take up 'Apna Sapna Money Money' was the fact that it gave me a chance to do something different and unlike what I have done till now. For me, after playing bold and hot characters in 'Road' and Sanjay Gupta's 'Musafir', doing a comedy was definitely the next step,''Koena said.

The going was not easy for Koena, though.

''It was definitely not easy. Infact, initially I found it tough.

However, with time I have learnt the art of comedy. And now, I am raring to do many more comedies,''she said.

A factor that was of tremendous help to the actress was that most of her scenes in 'Apna Sapna Money Money' were with Ritiesh Deshmukh and Anupam Kher, both of them accomplished at comedy.

''The character of Julie Ramiyaa played by me in the film has a funny element to it because of her faulty pronunciation of the Hindi language. What made things easy for me was the fact that I had scenes with accomplished actors like Ritiesh, who appears in three different get ups in the film including that of a woman, and Anupam Kher,''she said.

However, one wonders whether in a multistarrer like 'Apna Sapna Money Money', which has as many as 12 characters, Koena's character would get noticed at all. Koena, however, defends her choice of the film. ''I chose to do the film because of many factors. Firstly, the film is being directed by an accomplished director like Sangeeth Sivan, which last year came up with a hit 'Kya Kool Hai Hum'.

Secondly, I was working with several good actors and lastly, the film is being made Mukta Arts, a prestigious banner. It was package too good to resist,''she said.

Koena added that despite the film being a multi-starrer, the director Sangeeth Sivan had managed to give a different look to each character, which gives each of them a distinct identity.

''Within the first half hour of the film, the audience will get to know all the characters completely,''she says.

A winner of the Gladrags megamodel contest a few years ago, the foray in films came to Koena just by chance.

''After winning the Gladrags contest, I turned down all the film offers that came to me, preferring to do just music videos. When Ramgopal Verma offered me an item song in 'Road', I took it up as just an extention of my stint with music videos. It was when I received a plethora of such roles that I realised that of I was serious about a film career, taking up these offers would not be a sound career move and hence refused most offers,''she says.

However, when Sanjay Gupta offered her a role in 'Musafir', a film which also featured her in an item song 'Saki Saki', Koena found it too good to resist.

''Sometimes you do big banner films with bit roles because it gives you a lot of visibility. Ultimately, I feel it does further your career in some way as happened with 'Musafir'. For, even today, when the song appears on the TV screen , it attracts a lot of attantion,''she said.

For one who has never charted a career path for herself, Koena is happy at the way her career has shaped so far.

''I am fortunate to have got an opportunity to work with good banners like Sanjay Gupta, Ramgopal Verma, Sanjay Gupta and Subhash Ghai within such a short period,''she said.

However, henceforth Koena said she would be looking for roles which require her to show off more than just 'glamour'.

''I would like to do roles which I am proud of later. Some day, hopefully I would like to do something different from the 'glamour girl' portrayals that have characterised my films till now.

''My role in 'Anamika' is not just about song and dance. It is a strong character where I have a lot of scope to perform. The story of the film revolves around me and Minnisha,''she said.

UNI''My role in 'Anamika' is not just about song and dance. It is a strong character where I have a lot of scope to perform. The story of the film revolves around me and Minnisha,''she said.

UNI