Actress Pooja Chopra, who features in Neeraj Pandey's "Aiyaari", says it was a huge compliment for her when the filmmaker got her on board for the movie without an audition.
Pooja was earlier a part of Pandey's short film "Ouch".
"I think it is a huge compliment that he showed faith in me and trusted me to play such a strong character. When we were doing workshops, he praised me for my work. But the fact that he called me for his next immediate film without an audition, that's a huge compliment," she said.
Was there performance pressure when working with a filmmaker like Pandey?
"I was very happy because I felt the pressure during 'Ouch' and he had seen my potential and talent at that time. I just didn't want to disappoint him and his fate in me. And I am glad to have had the chance to work with him again."
Pooja, who debuted in Bollywood with "Commando", was asked how were the characters of "Aiyaari" and "Commando" different.
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She said: "My character in 'Commando' was that of the girl next door. She was just a normal girl. There was no need to transform myself.
"But here, Maya Semwal exhibits no girly traits. She is a man among men. Both the characters are very diverse. In fact, the character I played in the short film 'Ouch', is also completely different.
"In 'Ouch', I am a lady who has an extramarital affair. I am glad I got to play three different roles and they were all challenging in their own way."
On what makes being a part of "Aiyaary" special, the former Miss India said: "'Aiyaary' is very special because it is with a director I always wanted to work with, which is a very rare chance, especially for a girl to get a chance to play such a strong performance-oriented character is not easy."
The movie features Sidharth Malhotra and Manoj Bajpayee as army officers in a storyline that brings corruption within the system to the forefront.
The film also features Rakul Preet Singh, Naseeruddin Shah and Anupam Kher. It will release on Friday.
--IANS
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