From playing an NRI tapori girl in Awara Paagal Deewana, a split personality woman in Raja Bhaiya, a bar dancer in love with an underworld don in Shootout at lokhandwala, a housewife in Daddy Cool and a small-town girl in Dus Tola, with every performance Aarti Chhabria has managed to impress.
For now, her stint with Jhalak Dikhhla Jaa (JDJ) has come to an abrupt end but this model-turned-actor knows how to take things in her stride. “I love dancing and I was getting paid for doing something I love to do. Couldn’t have asked for anything more,” Chhabria tells you.
“JDJ is my favourite dance show. I’ve also been following its international counterpart Strictly Come Dancing on BBC and Dancing with the Stars on ABC. I worked hard for seven weeks but my health didn’t allow me to perform difficult acts. I’ve to admit that JDJ was tiring,” Chhabria, winner of Miss India Worldwide 2000, says.
With four wild card entries, Chhabria feels that the show has got spicier. The level of competition will only get tougher. “I didn’t let my injury dampen my spirits. I told Cornel Rodrigues, my choreographer, that we’ll keep the dance form simple but not quit. The best part is that JDJ has helped me get back in shape,” she says, adding that the only part she didn’t enjoy in the show was asking the audience for votes.
Her other regret is that she couldn’t groove to Bollywood style which is her forte. “It was a learning experience with Cornel. From tango, bachata, waltz to cakewalk, I thoroughly enjoyed every new form,” the actor says. Chhabria is all set to enter the Punjabi film industry with a movie coming this September. But her ideal directors are Rakyesh Omprakash Mehra and Vikramaditya Motwani. As for Karan Johar, Chhabria regards him as her greatest mentor. “He is witty and has a sense of humor. His honest feedback made me improve with every subsequent act,” she adds.
Among the current lot of contestants, Chhabria admires the way lauren dances. “We used to live in the JDJ house where everybody became a family. I’m going to miss all this,” she says.
The actress is going to debut in Punjabi movies this September with a romantic comedy Viyaah Sattar. But before that, she is headed for a long vacation. “I would love to settle down at some point and have children but right now all I need is a vacation,” she concludes.