Shilpa plans to produce movies, but direction is not on
the cards. "I haven't thought of it (direction), but
I would be definitely producing films, she said."
Shilpa is paired with Chinese actor Xia Yu in "The
Desire", directed by journalist-turned-national award-winning
Malayalam film director R. Sarath.
The story traces the respective lives of accomplished Odissi
dancer Goutami (Shilpa) and talented Chinese artiste Jai
Leang (Xia Yu) who meet in Malaysia.
"I have never portrayed a role like this. I liked
the script. Considering the fact that dancing has always
been my forte I got a role where dancing is an integral
part of the film. So I enjoyed doing this part.
"Normally
what happens is that you do a film where they force a dance
number in. I got to try a different dance form, Odissi.
So I learnt it. I got to work with a foremost Chinese actor
that was again a different experience," said Shilpa,
who was last seen doing an item number in the 2008 hit "Dostana".
"Here we are projecting two forms of art, Chinese
paintings and Odissi dancing - the two rich cultural heritages
and the amalgamation of these," she added.
"The Desire" was expected to be completed in
2009, but got stalled due to a financial crisis and it has
recently been bailed out by Shilpa's mother, Sunanda Shetty,
and is ready to hit the screens. The release date has, however,
not been decided.
"I am really happy that it has done well at the festival
circuit; people loved it. It won an award at the Geneva
Film Festival. The most important thing is that mommy came
in to support the film," said Shilpa who made her debut
with Shah Rukh Khan-starrer "Baazigar" in 1993.
In her 18-year-long acting career the 36-year-old actress
featured in films like "Main Khiladi Tu Anari",
"Dhadkan", "Dus", "Life... in a
Metro" (2007) and "Apne" (2007). She gained
international recognition after featuring and winning Britain's
reality show "Big Brother" in 2007.
"The Desire" is Shilpa's first film where most
of her dialogues are in English and the actress says initially
she felt awkward.
"For the first time I have done my dialogues in English.
It was very odd, you know. Imagine saying a dialogue in
English; I was wondering whether I am doing it right. It
was different. On every front it was a different learning
process for me," she said.
The film also features Anupam Kher, Jaya Prada and Vikram
Gokhale among others.
"The Desire" is quite a bold film, but there
is nothing vulgar, claims Shilpa.
"It's about gender preferences and how everyone has
a desire. There is another character who is attracted to
me, but I am not attracted towards her. She has a string
of affairs but she is chasing me too. There is nothing vulgar
in the movie. It's a very aesthetically shot movie,"
said Shilpa.