VluvAnita.net

Dare-devilry to spirituality
ITI SHREE MISRA

ANITA Hassanandani is back with a bang after a nearly three-year-long hiatus. She is creating quite a stir with her dare-devilry in Khatron Ke Khiladi and as Draupadi in Kahaani Hamaaray Mahaabhaarat Ki.
The petite actress, then known as Natassha, who had the nation dancing to Tere ishq ki deewangi in the film Krishna Cottage, has since become wiser and has reverted to her original name Anita. Explaining why she went ahead with the name change in the first place, she said it was because Ekta Kapoor wanted her to do so. “I was to play the lead in their film Kuchh to Hai and because of their belief in numerology they changed my name to Natassha. The film did fairly well but simultaneously my Tamil film was also a huge hit in which my name was Anita, so I stuck to my original name. I was more comfortable with the name Anita than Natassha.”
But why did she take such a long break? “It was while I was doing the serial Kavyanjali that I felt exhausted and decided to take a break. Besides, the offers I was getting weren’t exciting enough. So in the interim, I learnt salsa, jazz and cooking, instead.”
And she has indeed created quite a stir with her comeback. While she has been praised for her stunts in Khatron.., her performance as Draupadi in Mahaabhaarat… has faced a lot of criticism. Accused of being very loud and over the top in her very first appearance as Draupadi, Anita says: “Although I take the criticism very positively, I really don’t understand why a comparison is being made with the previous Mahabharat. But then each one has the right to voice his/her opinion. After all, everyone can’t have the same tastes.”
After a pause she adds, “Anyway, It was my first scene and I was totally unprepared for it. There were no rehearsals, no workshops and no preparations. All I say is give me some time and I will improve.”
Coming back to happier topics, Anita is one of the 13 girls who are into daring
stunts in Khatron Ke Khiladi. Just back from its shoot, she exclaims: “It was an experience of a lifetime. In fact, it’s been the best experience of my life and I’m glad I did it.” Adding, she says, “I took up the show to test my inner strength.”
Recalling her scariest stunt on the show – the one with cockroaches and bungee jumping, she says, “I was petrified at first but after I completed the task, it felt great. It made me feel so content and happy.” But it was actually the water diving stunt which Anita found the toughest. “I don’t know how to swim, so even though I tried I couldn’t complete the task. I was scared but I attempted it, and that made me feel great.”
In spite of doing good films, which did fairly well, Anita could never make it to the big league. And without making any excuses, Anita holds her poor PR skills responsible for that. “I never cashed in on the success of my films. I never tomtommed about myself, which I should have. Plus, I don’t even socialise much and I don’t call up people to ask for roles. So I lost out in the ratrace, but I have no regrets.” So as of now, “it’s only Mahaabhaarat that I’m concentrating on,” she informs as she adds, “I will do a film only if something exciting comes my way. I do get offers for films but I’m not interested. I’m content with the way my life is at the moment.”
itishree.misra@timesgroup.com