Pooja Chopra with Vidyut Jammwal in Commando

I was born in Calcutta and though I went off to live in Pune when I was less than a month old, my roots are in Calcutta. I auditioned for Miss India from Calcutta,” says beauty queen-turned-Bolly-girl Pooja Chopra.

Commando has created quite a buzz despite starring a newcomer and a debutante…

Where do I start from? Everyone I know is very excited about the film. The promo has crossed a couple of million hits on YouTube. The songs have been received very well. Saawan bairi is number one on the charts while Lut jaawan is at number three. Vidyut (Jammwal) and I are newcomers and it’s so important for us to be accepted. From the response we have received so far, we are confident that we have crossed the first hurdle. We are hearing all sorts of things like: ‘New good-looking jodi’, ‘great chemistry’. Now we just have to see how they react to the film.

Was a film career always on the radar?

Not at all, though Miss India definitely was. Actually, I grew up wanting to open a cafe or a restaurant for my mother (Neera) who has worked in a hotel all her life and I wanted her to have something of her own. It was my mother who wanted me to become an actor and so here I am. She has struggled all her life… a single mother who has brought up two daughters and rebelled against a husband who didn’t want girls in his family…. Whatever I am today is because of my mother.

How did Commando happen?

They auditioned about 100 girls. In fact, Vipul Shah (the producer of Commando) told me that I was the 100th girl they auditioned! I met Vipul Shah and Dilip Ghosh (the director) for about an hour and gave an audition. Within minutes they told me that it didn’t seem like I was mouthing dialogues… that I was a natural. It was then that I got an inkling that I was on.

Commando is an action thriller with Vidyut hogging the spotlight. How much of a presence do you have?

I would say that the film wouldn’t happen without my character Simrit because Commando is essentially Simrit’s story. The story in one line is a fight between the heroine and the villain. It’s the girl’s character that is the catalyst for all the action and drama in the film. Honestly, it’s not just an action film… action is definitely the USP because of Vidyut but besides action, Commando has great music and an emotional love story. I think I am very lucky to debut in a film that centres around me because all that girls in most Hindi films get today are three songs and two scenes.

Did you do any stunts yourself?

I did but it wasn’t really supposed to be trained action. Simrit is not a fighter, but when pushed against the wall, she has to take a knife and slit her attackers. What was very challenging was the 45ft drop that I took from a bridge into the water in freezing temperatures. I don’t know how to swim and that was pretty scary. And, of course, running through the uneven terrain of the jungle trying to match Vidyut’s pace is no less than any action!

How was it sharing screen space with Vidyut?

We’ve known each other for quite a while… we’ve done fashion shows together as models. On set, we hit it off quite well. We have been friends and so I was happy that I didn’t have to romance a stranger on set.

Any other films coming up?

I have signed another film with Vipul Shah, but that will be announced only a month after Commando’s release.