Good looks not always important: Minissha Lamba

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NEW DELHI - Actress Minissha Lamba admits her ultra-glamorous look in “Kidnap” opened a whole new range of opportunities for her. But the young actress, who will be seen in Shyam Benegal’s new film, feels that at the end of it talent plays an important role.

“My looks in ‘Kidnap’ helped open a whole new and different range of opportunities for me. It is something I cherish. Being good looking is important, but not always. You need talent as well. If you have talent, people accept you regardless of the way you look,” Lamba told IANS over telephone from Mumbai.

She also feels being short is not a disadvantage in the film industry.

“If you are a model, having height is imperative, but cinema is a medium where it doesn’t matter. You are on a platform where being tall or short loses relevance,” she said.

After her glamorous avatar in “Kidnap”, Minissha will be seen in a non-glamorous role in Benegal’s forthcoming film, “Well Done Abba”.

“At first I was really scared to work with Mr. Benegal. But once we started shooting, he turned out to be a really calm, jovial and humorous person. We never saw him upset on the sets,” she said.

“Well Done Abba”, a political satire, narrates the story of Armaan Ali (Boman Irani), a driver working in Mumbai. He takes a month’s leave to find a husband for his teenaged daughter, who lives in a small neighbourhood near Hyderabad. But he returns to his job after three months. His young employer wants to sack him, but is persuaded to listen to the reason why he got so delayed.

The film, produced by Reliance Big Pictures, is inspired by two short stories - “Narsaiyyan Ki Bavdi” by Jeelani Bano and “Phulwa Ka Pul” by Sanjeev.

Benegal had said in an interview that Minissha hasn’t got her due in Bollywood, but the 25-year-old says she has no regrets.

“That’s extremely generous of him to have said that, but it’s all right. I hope with this film my talent gets appreciated and I get more opportunities to show my potential,” she said.

Minissha started her journey as an actor from the critically acclaimed film, “Yahaan”, alongside Jimmy Shergill in 2005. She was later seen in “Corporate”, “Shaurya”, and Yash Raj Films’ “Bachna Ae Haseeno”.

“It has been a great journey. There were disappointments and heartbreak, but I am grateful for where I am today. There is a lot more I need to do and work even harder,” she added.

Releasing March 26, it also stars Samir Dattani, Ila Arun, Ravi Kisshan, Sonali Kulkarni and Yashpal Sharma.