She’s just back from a hectic schedule abroad, shooting in Germany, Austria and Thailand. So when the news of the latest controversy surrounding some remarks she supposedly made about her being a North Indian actor, hit her, actor Kajal Aggarwal was astounded and upset.
Moreover, there were reports that the Tamil and Telugu industries were seeking to put a ban on her till she apologised. After all, it was the Southern industry that had kicked off her sparkling career.
Seeking to clear the air and give her side of the story, the ‘Singham’ girl spoke to City Express about it.
The actress, who has a four-year-old career in the South Indian film industry and is riding high with upcoming ‘Maatran’, opposite Surya, apart from the Telugu films, ‘Dhada’, and ‘The Business Man’, is awaiting the release of her debut in Hindi with ‘Singham’. The remarks attributed to her were supposedly at a promotional event for ‘Singham’.
Says an astounded Kajal who seems proud to have started her career in the south, “I don’t know why all this is being said about me and why I am being misquoted. The South Indian films and industry have always had a very special place in my life. I haven’t been in the country for over a month now and wasn’t available to even give such quotes to the media! Even though I hail from Mumbai, South India is the birthplace of my career and I would never speak like this for the industry I am so attached to.
“In spite of whatever rubbish people around have to say, I do not really need to prove my loyalties to my audience. They can see it through my work. I have always taken, and continue to take great pride in being a ‘South Indian actress’. I am currently working on four projects in Telugu and Tamil.”
So where exactly did the comments attributed to her originate?
According to Kajal, she was misquoted when answering a specific question, in a different context, “One Mumbai publication asked me if I would relocate to Mumbai, now that I was doing a Hindi film. In answer to that specific question, I replied that I already have a home in Mumbai and travel to Chennai and Hyderabad for films there. So the need to relocate to Mumbai did not arise, as I come back here anyway. These comments were twisted around later. I would never say anything disparaging about the South Indian film industry which made me who I am today!”
And what does she have to say about the impending ban on her South Indian films? Says Kajal, “No one in the industry has contacted me about any ban or spoken anything about this to me .” Meanwhile, she is busy shooting the final song for ‘Singham’ at Mumbai’s film city. “Designer Vikram Phadnis has done my costumes for this Sufi number called ‘Maula’, choreographed by Ganesh Acharya,” she reveals.
One duet with Ajay Devgn was shot earlier in Goa. ‘Singham’ is set for a July release while Kajal is set to start ‘Maatran’ with Surya and ‘The Business Man’ with Mahesh Babu soon.