These are hard times in Bollywood and even top-notch stars are scouting desperately for roles. But the slowdown isn’t stopping actress Chitrangda Singh from making a sizzling comeback. After taking a break from the movie world for two years she has stormed back into action and has, quick as a flash, signed up for four movies in a row.

First out of the cans will be Sali Zindagi, in which she plays a struggling guitarist and singer. The movie’s directed by Sudhir Mishra who first took her to stardom in the critically acclaimed Hazaaron Khwaishein Aisi back in 2005. Sali Zindagi, which also stars Irfaan Khan, is slated to release in October. “I realised I was missing being part of the creative process that movie making involves and decided it was time to face the camera once again,” says Chitrangda.

The actress has also signed two more movies with Mishra. But now she’s getting ready to work on a movie that’s tentatively titled, Paki, being made by south Indian director Shiva under the Madras Talkies banner. Work on Paki, which co-stars Vivek Oberoi, is scheduled to start later this month. She also has other projects in the pipeline that she isn’t ready to talk about yet.

Chitrangada shares a moment with her mother and sister-in-law

Though gearing up for action soon, Chitrangda now lives away from the hustle and bustle of the movie industry, with her golfer husband, Jyoti Randhawa, in Gurgaon. And, she’s kept busy during the day, juggling her time between her son, Zorawar, and learning salsa for her new film and also taking diction classes.

But even if she’s relatively detached it isn’t stopping directors from hunting her out. Director Mishra says that he would never hesitate to give her roles of substance in his films. “The audiences are so enamoured by her beauty that not many people realise that she is immensely talented without being trained in acting,” he says.

One of Mishra’s movies with Chitrangda is tentatively named Driver and the second one is called Dhruv. She’ll be sharing screen space with Farhan Khan and Kareena Kapoor in the two movies. The advertising industry too has been beating a path to her door. She’s endorsing high-profile brands like Brooke Bond’s Taj Mahal tea, Garnier, Parachute hair oil and Aliva biscuits from Frito-Lay.

The actress with co-stars Kay Kay Menon (left) and Shiney Ahuja (right) in Hazaaron Khwaishein Aisi

The fact is that, right from the start, Chitrangda has had an easy path into, first, modelling and then the film industry. She started modelling in college and was quickly picked for a music video. That’s where she was spotted by Mishra’s production manager and asked to appear for an audition. Though she didn’t expect to be selected considering her lack of experience, she was pleasantly surprised to land a role. “Some incidents are like a jigsaw which come together and no matter how much we try to orchestrate a similar coincidence you can’t repeat it,” she says with a mix of childlike innocence and worldly wisdom.

It’s fair to say that Chitrangda’s dusky, sultry beauty has resulted in her making an instant splash. She made a critically acclaimed debut in Hazaaron Khwaishein Aisi. Director Onir’s Sorry Bhai opposite Sanjay Suri and Sharman Joshi in 2008 gave her a second chance to claim her share of fame and adulation once again. “The kind of rush and satisfaction you get being the helm of a creative exercise and delivering the result in the end is fantastic,” she says. Mishra reckons she is a bundle of talent and good looks. “Her relationship with the camera is fantastic. What she doesn’t know is that she is a very skilled actress and her potential needs to be tapped in the right way,” says Mishra. Chitrangda has always put in extra effort for her roles with Mishra. In her first movie, since she was a newbie in the movie industry, he sent her for a crash course with veteran theatre director Barry John to work on her body language. For Sali Zindagi she took guitar lessons. So, has she perfected the art of strumming? “It won’t look wrong but you can’t hear what I play,” she chuckles.

Her new role suits her in more ways than one. She reckons: “Women want to do so much in life but their life comes with restraints. The desire to fight res-traints makes them more interesting.” Chitrangda picks and chooses assignments with assiduous care. Unlike some actors who believe that a script is most important, she reckons that the most crucial thing in any project is the director. Next come the banner and the script. “If the banner is great and the director is good I know that the film will be presented fantastically,” she says.

For the time being, Chitrangda isn’t thinking of moving to Mumbai but she’s looking for a small rented pad there. Currently, every time she makes a trip to Mumbai she stays in a hotel. Her mother, who lives with the family in Gurgaon, looks after their son while Chitrangda’s away. Is she worried about her career as an actress and getting ahead in the game? “Being discontented in life is my biggest fear,” is her instant reply.

For the time being it doesn’t seem like this will be a major worry for the actress who, with remarkable ease, has always had the world at her feet.