Stardom changes people, says Dia Mirza

Actor is happy with her progress in Bollywood.

MACAU: She was a teenager when she won the coveted Miss Asia Pacific title in 2000 and, since then, Dia Mirza has been trying to make a name for herself as an actor, social worker and now as a producer. Despite her beautiful face and decent acting skills, the beauty has failed to make much of an impact in the competitive industry.

“Stardom sometimes can bring a lot of pretension in your life. I’ve noticed that a lot of people around you change, and that is scary. I’ve tried to stay the same,” Dia said in an interview to IANS. “It [stardom] has bothered me. I will be dishonest if I say it hasn’t. But it hasn’t overwhelmed or destroyed me.”

“I have given my shot to acting,” she said, opening up about broadening her horizons within filmdom through her movie production banner, Born Free Entertainment.

“I gave a good 10 years to acting. Now my horizons are expanding and I’m exploring myself. I’m optimistic and happy with my company.”

Dia made her Bollywood debut with Rehnaa Hai Terre Dil Mein. Her endearing smile did wonders for her, and she went on to feature in several films like Tumko Na Bhool Paayenge, Tumsa Nahin Dekha — A Love Story, Parineeta, Dus and Lage Raho Munnabhai.

But she couldn’t match the success of Lara Dutta and Priyanka Chopra, who bagged the Miss Universe and Miss World crowns, respectively, in the same year as Dia. She agrees, and says it is only her audience’s perception that has mattered to her.

“I’ve never been crushed by the industry’s perception. I’ve always been motivated by the audience’s perception. People love me, and no one can change that,” she said. “From where I came and how I started, I’ve got more than what I could have asked for. I have only gratitude.”

“But if you compare me with my contemporaries, then maybe I didn’t do many big films, or I did big films, and they didn’t do well,” said the actor.

Dia is only bothered about competing with herself. “If there’s fear, you will never grow. When you are competing with other people, you have fear and then you can never grow,” she said.

She says that film offers never stopped coming her way. But nothing was exciting enough. “There are so many young girls who have come into the industry now and have been a part of successful films. I think all the new and good film-makers are interested to cast them. This can be extremely terrifying for an actor,” she quipped.

Published in The Express Tribune, July 13^th, 2013.

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