"Why I slapped Akshay,” Katrina Kaif

"Why I slapped Akshay," Katrina Kaif
 

AC band karo please she screams. "Oh man, I'm going to freeze to death, its freaking crazy here," she breaks into a smile as we catch up with her over black coffee in a suburban 5 star hotel. As we start our conversation, the first thing one notice is that her accent has become more Indian and she has picked up quite a few Hindi words. She talks to Gautam Buragohain about her shot at stardom....

You ended 2007 on a high note with 3 big hits this year.
"Oh, yes, I had Namaste London, Apne, Partner . And all the 3 films did well. It's been an extremely fulfilling year professionally for me. My career is moving towards the right direction. I have taken the leap in the right direction and hopefully next year will be even better. But trust me my best is yet to come,"

And what about your personal front?
"What about it?"

Your love life?
(Raising her eyebrows) "C'mon don't start it all over again. I'm not answering this."

But you are known outside as Salman Khan's girlfriend?
"Oh really? That's weird; no one has ever told me that."

Ok got the message loud and clear. How has your family reacted to your new found stardom in Bollywood?
"My family is a little disconnected with the film industry. They have no proper knowledge about Bollywood. Whatever little they know about Bollywood is through me. But I'm glad that I have been able to give them financial security. It gives me immense pleasure to see my family financially secure because of me. It's a different high and satisfaction; I can't even explain it in words."

You started off with movies like Boom and now you have films with big stars like Salman, Akshay and Saif. How does it feel?
"It's a wonderful feeling. Everyone wanted to be on the top, but hailing from a non filmi background the success is sweet. I just wanted to prove it to myself."

Were you upset when critics called you just another pretty young thing who can't act?
"It was harsh. They should have understood where I came from. I had no formal training. I was very raw when I came in, I'm learning and improving with each day and still I have miles to go."

You seem to be an expert in comedies these days?
"You are right; actually I did quite a lot this year and also learnt a lot. Comedy is difficult, but once you get a grasp of it, you have a blast. Thanks to all the comedies that I did this year, I'm here today talking to you."


And your chemistry with Akshay Kumar?
"I think we look good on screen. I love working with Akshay. He is a non -judgmental kind of person. You don't feel shy while working with him. He makes me very comfortable."

You remember any incident with Akshay?
"Oh yes. I don't know whether I should speak about it or not. I'm sure he will get mad at me for telling it to you."

Please go ahead
"You know what? I slapped Akshay while shooting for Welcome . I was required to slap Akshay for a scene. I did that, but somehow it was not looking real and the director called for a re-take, I did the shoot again, still I was not getting it. Akshay got fed up and scream at me c'mon slap me hard. I got carried away and landed one tight slap, everyone just froze on the sets, and there was a pin drop silence. I realized what I did, and I'm like; I'm so sorry Akshay I know you are so upset. But Akshay took it sportingly. Now I'm practicing how to slap people without actually slapping them."

What was your first impression when you met Salman Khan?
"When I did my first film with Salman, it was like "oh my god", I'm going to do a film with Salman Khan. I had virtually butterflies in my stomach."

What's for 2008?
"Plenty, my diary is full. There's Abbas Mastan's Race , Subhash Ghai's Yuvraj , Yash Raj's film, Vipul Shah's Singh is Kinng . Phew! I'm already tried," (smiles)

Any New Year resolutions?
"Just to go ahead, don't want to get stagnant. Keep walking."