Kissing John was no big deal: Sonal Sehgal

After making a splash on TV with the soaps Saara Akash and Hotel Kingston, actress Sonal Sehgal is gung ho about her big screen debut. And why not? It’s opposite one of tinseltown’s hottest poster boys, John Abraham, in Nagesh Kukunoor’s Aashayein.

Ask about her working equation with John, and she doesn’t mind stating the obvious. “Oh! It was great working with him. He doesn’t have any starry tantrums… When we first met on the sets he said, ‘you look familiar’ and I laughed. I’m sure he’s got better things to do than watch TV.”

Kiss and tell

Ayesha Takia’s loss became her gain; Ayesha walked out of the movie because she was reluctant to do a kissing scene and Sonal stepped in. So, is the kissing scene still there?

She says, “Yeah. But why so much fuss about it? It may have been a big deal for her, but it wasn’t a big deal for me. In fact, we didn’t even have to do too many retakes. It is just part of your job — similar to doing dangerous stunts or crying on screen.”

Was working with John a big deal? “Why should it be? He’s a regular guy. Besides, I really don’t care about costars... that should be the last of your worries.”

She may have stayed away from television for two years, but the actress insists that it wasn’t intentional. “There wasn’t anything exciting so I got busy with theatre.”

But that doesn’t mean it’s goodbye to the small screen. “The biggest stars of cinema are on TV today. So how can one shy away from it. But I’m not planning anything — I take things as they come.”

The glam TV actress will be seen in a de-glam avatar in Aashayein, and Sonal is so nervous about her ‘new’ look that she hasn’t checked a single shot on screen!

“Nagesh asked me come without make-up, which my make-up artist confused with the ‘no-make-up’ look. So, he did a little touch up with base, nude lipstick, etc. The moment Nagesh saw it, he asked me to come back “without make-up”, so I went back and washed my face. And that’s not the only compromise she made for her role.

“I turned vegetarian a month before the shoot to avoid pimples, as make-up was a complete no-no. I hope there are no dark circles in any frame.”