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  1. She’s the true blue Miss Sunshine. Be it father Shakti Kapoor’s sting operation or being dropped by a big banner …nothing can mar Shraddha Kapoor’s mojo. Filmfare bets on tomorrow’s girl.

    The daughter of the well-known Shivangi and Shakti Kapoor, Shraddha was inevitably introduced to the film industry at an early age. “My dad would come home with make-up on, his attire would be weird, his hair peculiar and I’d ask, ‘Why are you dressed like this, papa?’ I had no clue what movies were all about. To the extent she even thought he had supernatural powers!

    Bubbling with life, she’ll ping you on your Blackberry and before you reply, she’s off to sleep. Her first words to me are always, “What’s the gossip Nandu?” That’s Shraddha, carefree and breezy. Her first film Teen Patti failed to make its mark at the box office. And her second outing, Luv Ka The End, also didn’t exactly create magic.

    Shraddha always knew she wanted to face the camera. Her growing up years were envoloped in a bubble of compliments about her good looks and suggestions that she seek stardom. Teen Patti happened when producer Ambika Hinduja spotted her on her Brother Siddhanth Kapoor’s Facebook account.

    “Before Teen Patti released, I auditioned for a really important film. I worked day and night and gave the audition my all. But I didn’t bag the part.” The film was Sanjay Leela Bhansali’s My Friend Pinto opposite Prateik. After Teen Patti released and tanked, Kalki replaced her in the film. In the process, she was offered a lot of trashy films. Plus, she got a lot of offers from the South for whopping amounts of money but refused because she wanted to concentrate on Hindi cinema.

    But since she was a pretty face, she sure didn’t go unnoticed. One of India’s most prolific production houses, Yash Raj Films, called her for an audition. She knew she had her second lease of life. They gave her five scenes and two songs to prepare. I gave it my best shot and in a week even bagged the film!”

    Director Bumpy’s Luv Ka The End seems to be a hit with the school and college going audience. It dealt with issues of an 18-year-old girl who decides to get back at her boyfriend for taking advantage of her. While the critics have panned the film for its lack of content, also calling it homophobic.

    Our conversation veers into more serious territory. I’m very curious to know how it was growing up with father Shakti Kapoor who played the rogue everyone loved to hate. Didn’t she get into fights in school defending him? She smiles, “Well, I never found myself defending him but a lot of my friends were wary of meeting him. She avoids commenting on the ‘cringe factor’ some of her dad’s films were known for. She says, “I haven’t seen many of my dad’s films that had the cringe factor. I haven’t seen Naughty @ 40.

    How did she feel about the sting operation on her father in 2005 where he named some industry personalities being involved in the casting couch syndrome? “You know those headlines, the sting operation and the whole scandal… I couldn’t take it the way they were talking about my dad. I just couldn’t watch it. But mom was actually the most pivotal, the strongest person at that point. I think my dad was made a scapegoat. While the entire family was affected, they recovered quickly thanks to mother Shivani’s strength, says Shraddha.

    Her elder brother Siddhanth Kapoor is also set to make his entry into showbiz. Not so long ago the young lad found himself at the wrong place at the wrong time. The police raided a club he was partying at with his friends. Reportedly, drugs were found and being a star son the media spotlight was on him. While he was eventually given a clean chit, it was again a testing time for the family. Shraddha remembers, “A whole bunch of people were caught, weren’t they?

    All this has only made the newest pin-up girl positive that the going is only going to get better. So is she single? “Maybe,” she answers. I ask her about her ‘close friendship’ with a certain Vanraj Zaveri and she quips, “Maybe. You’re getting none of this information out of me. It’s my personal life.” Single or not Shraddha has style and spunk like none other.




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