In her new role as entrepreneur, she's added to the IPL's celeb quotient. But Shilpa Shetty is also juggling a host of other ventures, Priyanka Joshi finds.
She hasn’t had a release in some time, hits have been sparse, Hollywood offers since her controversial win of Big Brother have been notable for their absence, her relationship with beau Raj Kundra has cast her as the “other woman”, and the couple’s recent purchase of a $15.4 million stake in the Indian Premier League team Rajasthan Royals has been touted as a Valentine’s Day gift as well as a hard-headed business decision.
There’s no compelling reason for Shetty to be hogging the news — yet here she is, at the Taj Mahal Hotel in Mumbai, earning the ire of the press, many of whom had been promised “exclusives”, but who have now been lumped together for a hastily arranged press conference.
“I have a flight to catch to Jaipur, where I have a shooting scheduled for the music video for Rajasthan Royals,” she smiles prettily, by way of apology. Having battled Mumbai’s afternoon humidity and traffic, and been glared at by safari-suited security guards, I can’t help but wonder what the fuss is about. What is it about Shilpa Shetty that still commands the media into complying with her, quote, byte and action?
The leggy Mangalorean beauty made her acting debut along with two of the biggest stars, Shah Rukh Khan (in a negative role in Baazigar) and Kajol. But while Khan and Kajol went on to command the marquee, Shetty made do with mediocre films then, and even fewer films now, until Jade Goody’s “racist” remarks brought her visibility. Despite the spark of talent she showed in films such as Phir Milenge and Life in a Metro, Shetty hasn’t been busy. “That’s a conscious decision,” she says now. “I can’t handle more than one or two film projects,” she insists.
In this coming — the reason I’m here to meet her — Shetty has moved on to her latest venture, a chain of medispas, with entrepreneur Kiran Bawa as partner. Although Bawa will head the day-to-day operations of Iosis, it is Shetty who has her hands full fielding a clamouring media.
Talking in “exclusive” snatches to a few of us, she divulges that the video for the Rajasthan Royals, Halla bol — “sung by Sunidhi Chauhan and Anand Raaj Anand, and composed by Anand Raaj Anand, with Ken Ghosh as director” — has Ahmed Khan rendering her dance moves. “When it is finally aired on March 20,” she says, “I hope it becomes the anthem of cricket lovers.”
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From actress to businesswoman, Shetty’s transition has been slow but steady. She claims, vehemently, that since her father was a businessman, her decision to enter the beauty spa business is not without precedent.
“I took a beautician’s course just after completing my standard 10th exams,” she discloses. “I always wanted a beauty salon,” but the glamour industry intruded on that dream, at least till recently, “when Kiran proposed this joint venture”.
Shetty will be a 50 per cent partner with Bawa, of the Bawa Group of hotels, who lays out their ambitious plans: “In the next month, we will be adding around 15 spas in Mumbai with an investment of Rs 1 crore each, and also open branches in Bangalore, Chandigarh, Delhi and Pune through franchisees.” Surprisingly, this time around Raj Kundra has nothing to do with her business. “I wanted to have a business like a wellness centre, and Kiran’s offer for medispas fitted the bill,” Shetty explains.
All of which puts a lot of pressure on her right now. “Yes, I am working on too many things at the same time,” she acknowledges, “and since my production house needs a lot of attention, I have decided to put it on hold” for now.
The actress’s production house S2 Global Productions had signed filmmaker Manish Jha of Matrubhoomi fame to direct her first home production, but is now stalled.
Can’t her staff oversee work for her production house? “I am a control freak and I need to do everything on my own. I don’t even delegate work to my sister as I want to have the final look. So, it’s best that I do one thing at a time.”
What with shooting for Desire, her first feature film in English, by Sarath Kumar, in which she will pair with Chinese star Xia Yu, and the promotional video for Rajasthan Royals, and the shooting of The Man with Sunny Deol in London, Shetty’s schedule is packed.
She won’t rise to the bait about her marriage plans, despite the glittering rock on her finger. “When the wedding bells ring, you shall hear them loud and clear,” she says with a smile.
For now, Shetty’s priorities are clear, and she articulates them for our benefit, “I’m glad that the games are happening at last... I can’t wait for the IPL to kick-start.” Nor we, honey.
