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Some years ago tough cop KPS Gill had his reputation smeared and was convicted by court when he dared to pinch IAS officer Ruppan Deol Bajaj’s bottom. Actor Rohit Roy must consider himself more fortunate that co-star Dia Mirza is not seeking legal recourse for his cheeky act. The former Miss India had a horrifying experience last week while she and Roy were at an outdoor shoot for the film Alibaug. According to sources from the film’s unit Dia was relaxing in the swimming pool at Goa’s Hotel Taj Village, where the cast was staying when Rohit also joined her. After a while just as Dia was getting out of the pool, Rohit swam from behind and pinched her butt. The shocked actor left the pool in tears.

But the real drama unfolded the next day when Rohit met Dia as if nothing had transpired the day before and insisted on greeting her and chatting with her as usual. The infuriated actress refused to talk to him till he tendered an unconditional apology. But Rohit, whose wife Manasi Joshi Roy was also in Goa, refused to apologise saying he hadn’t done anything wrong. At which point Dia threatened to make his act public and also inform his wife about the whole thing.

An eyewitness on condition of anonymity told this newspaper, “The first evening Dia Mirza left the pool crying and no one got to know what happened. However, the next day when Rohit wished her as if nothing had happened she was very upset and threatened to tell everyone about the incident if he did not apologise.” Reportedly things got even uglier at this point and Rohit retorted that he saw nothing in Dia that would prompt him to make advances at her. The heated argument went on for sometime till the rest of the cast intervened and Rohit apologised for his behaviour later.

When contacted Dia Mirza said she did not wish to discuss details. “All I can say is that such issues need to be handled with maturity.” Sources say that Dia refused to take the matter further as she did not wish to hurt Rohit’s wife and daughter.

While Rohit Roy dismissed the whole thing as a “misunderstanding”. “Misunderstandings happen on every set and whatever happened was sorted out that very minute. But there is no truth in that I pinched her. No one asked me to apologise. In fact, if Dia were unhappy she would have told me then and there itself. We were shooting together till Tuesday night and there is no issue whatsoever.”

It’s great to be…
In a city where I love to come back time and again. Kolkata has always been very special to me. Why, even my mother is a Bengali!

I’m looking forward to…
Cash with an ensemble cast, Bits and Pieces with Rahul Bose, Sanjay F Gupta’s Alibaug and Krazy 4. All these films are slated for release this year and I hope I don’t find egg on my face.

I prefer…
An ensemble cast to one where I play the lead. Lately there has been an upsurge in ensemble cast films and they only seek to up the ante.

Modelling for me…
Is a redundant word now. I feel there’s very little intelligence involved when you’re posturing. It’s when models leap over to films that they prove their acting prowess. Small wonder then that the most sought-after faces in Bollywood are all models!

I dislike…
Getting pigeon-holed. Bollywood suffers from it; a fear that plagues all actors. I have tried hard to cut loose and do roles that I have believed in and enjoyed working in.

As actors…
We allow ourselves to get stymied. I say act like it’s your last shot. No force on earth can circumscribe me.

For a change…
I was quite excited playing a TV journalist in Shootout at Lokhandwala. The final product hadn’t quite shaped up the way I thought it would. My character was left wanting. But again, I’m an actor and my role ends there. Any extension of it offscreen would be cut short.

Former Miss India Dia Mirza will be acting in national award winning director Manmohan Mahapatra’s film ‘Bits and Pieces’. She has been paired opposite Rahul Bose.

“I am stepping into art films with ‘Bits and Pieces’. The film will see me in a very different light,” says Dia.

Though the actor refuses to divulge details about her role, she reveals that the film is set in a mental asylum and has her ‘thrilled and excited’.

Dia, who was last seen as a reporter in Sanjay Gupta’s ‘Shootout at Lokhandwala’, says that she is now concentrating on doing ‘good cinema’. “In the last two years, I have tried to work in good films without looking at the length of the roles. In fact, more people have seen my work in this period. It is much better than doing a lot of stupid films.”

The model turn director will be next seen in ‘Cash’ where she tries her hand at comedy. “While in ‘Cash’ I play a humorous role, the film ‘Crazy 4′ will see me playing a reporter again My other movies are ‘Alibaug’ and ‘Dus Kahaniyan’,” she reveals.

Dia says that the production house was the most important criterion for her while choosing a film. She adds, “I have to judge whether the producers have the capacity to carry off a film. Then comes the script and then the director.”

Dia also discloses that she has voted over 60 times for the inclusion of Taj Mahal into the new list of the Seven Wonders of the World. But she remains tight-lipped about rumours of her affair with the macho actor Kunal Kapoor. “I am not going to speak anything about it,” is all she says.

When asked whether she would like her wax figure to be made at Madame Tussauds, actress DIA MIRZA looked surprised. “One should get all these things done when one has died. Why would I want to get a wax figure made when I am very much alive?” Dia, we guess, is one of the very few people from the glam industry, who minds “very much” being a part of the wax world. “The whole wax figure business sounds very bizarre to me. No offense to those who already have their wax figures made and the people who make it, I just don’t want one made for me.” Well, Dia we have made a note of that!

While many actors are fighting for more time on screen, actor Dia Mirza is quite content with her occasional cameos that get noticed – be it her role in Parineeta or her item number in Phir Hera Pheri. Dia tells us, “I work on instinct. There are times when I feel like doing a cameo because it’s a good opportunity to prove my mettle in a concise role and there are times I do it for friendship. Whatever the reason, the one thing that allows me to do what I want is the fact that I am secure and not worried of competition.” Looks like someone’s enjoying it all!

Actress Dia Mirza, who is usually the beautiful girl-nextdoor, seems to be opting for an image change by doing an item number in Phir Hera Pheri. Or is she? Our lady D clarifies, “Not at all. I believe that an actor should have a versatile image. It’s important not to restrict oneself. At the same time, it’s important not to do anything that goes against your grain.” So how was her debut ‘item dance’ experience? “It was a first of its kind indeed for me – a fun experience. I am also glad to be part of a sequel to a film that I had truly enjoyed watching.” Let’s ‘shake’ to that!

Dia Mirza’s got a lot to be excited about. She’s got a lot of films that are releasing this year – Alag, Munnabhai 2nd Innings, Honeymoon Travels Pvt Ltd and Familywala – and she’s willing to talk about all of them. But ask her about another film, Kabhi Bhi Kahin Bhi, and you get quite a different reaction from her. “I’ve completely disassociated myself from that film,” she says.

And there’s a story behind why. “The producer gave me a hard time. We were shooting in London when I got the news that my father had been hospitalised. The producer wouldn’t let me go back to be with him. My father passed away and I didn’t get to be with him before that,” says Dia.

But that’s not the end of it. “I then came back to be with my mother and five days later they call me up and say that they need me back in London. Come on! I didn’t get to be with my father, at least let me grieve with my mother!” But Dia says she fulfilled her commitment and went back and completed the shoot. “What’s more, I haven’t received my remuneration for the film,” she says.

Then she moves on to Alag which, she says, is “a dark movie, but not a sad movie.” It’s about a young boy with special abilities who, after a life of isolation, is released into the world. Dia plays Purva Rana, the psychologist who helps the boy, Tejas (played by Akshay Kapoor), adjust to his new life. While she’s got a slew of films releasing this year, she’s very excited about one particular project. “I’m working on a film that’s going to be the turning point of my career, with a director whose sensibilities I trust,” she gushes. But ask her to elaborate and she shakes her head resolutely and says, “I don’t want to say anything about it other than that I’m very, very excited about this film.”

Recently Dia Mirza was at the receiving end of a prank played on her by the otherwise quiet and serious Akshay Kapoor on the sets of Alag, a film produced by Subi Samuel and directed by Ashu Trikha.

During the picturisation of an intimate kissing scene between Dia and Akshay, Akshay asked Ashu for a retake. The second time round, he chewed on plenty of garlic and blew his foul breath on Dia.

“Alag is an emotional film, and we were very serious on the sets most of the time,” says Akshay. “However, the prankster in me was waiting to be let loose. So, I told Ashu about my intentions and he agreed to help me play a prank on Dia. I chewed on several cloves of garlic just before the kissing scene. Everything was fine till I blew the garlic breath on her face. All hell broke lose then and Dia freaked out. She was stunned. Soon, however, she realised that it was only a prank. She chased me all over the set, cursing me, and we all ended up having a good laughing over it.”

When contacted, director Ashu Trikha laughed about the incident. “It was surprising for Akshay to play a prank considering he is otherwise a very quiet guy,” he said.

Actors are one helluva busy people with no time for themselves. But Dia Mirza seems to have perfected the art of multitasking. She tells DT how she is always trying something new, and the choices are as different as ballet dancing and baking!

COOK BHI KAHO:

I enjoy cooking. I make Hyderabadi cuisine, and Italian food like pasta. The pressure cooker once blew up on me because I had put too much water in it, but that hasn’t stopped me from cooking. I enjoy baking and make good cakes. I have joined cake decoration classes too, because I want to bake the perfect Christmas and wedding cakes. I want to be perfect in everything I do. I am keeping my options open — it would be a perfect retirement plan to bake cakes.

A WEDDING CAKE?

No, the cake’s not for my wedding! Two people decide to get married when they reach a similar mental level. I haven’t reached that stage yet. So, I am fine with enjoying a man’s company, but am not okay with entering into a relationship.

A BALLERINA IN THE MAKING:

I am learning ballet dancing and modern and jazz music.

NOT EASY TO LIVE WITH:

My ideal man should be someone I respect and look up to. He should be secure because it is very difficult for a man to accept an independent woman who is outspoken and has a mind of her own. He should be really understanding, for, I am not an easy person to live with. So, as of now, my two-year-old dog remains my constant companion.

ALL IN THE GENES:

I love my home and my mom. She’s a Bengali and I have got my eyes from her. My dad was German and it is his genes I have to thank for, for my skin. I have always longed to go to Munich and discover my father’s family. I did go there with my mom sometime back. I visited our house there and mom showed me the portrait of my grandmother who was supposed to be a great beauty. Only I thought otherwise — my mother was quite angry with me for that!

DISCOVERING HER ROOTS:

I am doing my first Bengali film. Most of the actors are terrified of regional cinema because they can’t speak the language. But Bengali’s my mother tongue and I don’t look down upon any cinema.

SLOW ‘N’ STEADY:

My biggest insecurity would be waking up one morning and not knowing what to do. But I am calm and clear about what I want out of life. I don’t have a closed mind. I am ready to experiment, and I am making progress — slowly and steadily.