When
the
buzz
on
Saturday
was
that
Minissha
Lamba
was
very
unwell,
one
just
presumed
it
was
exhaustion
after
all
the
promotion
work
that
she
did
for
her
new
film.
But
it
was
worse.
The
petite
actress
was
down
with
a
violent
bout
of
food
poisoning.
Sounding
pale
and
out
of
sorts
but
jubilant
about
the
fabulous
reviews
she
got
Minissha
said,
“On
Friday
Boman
Irani
and
I
were
in
Ahmedabad.
I
had
this
chaat.
It
tasted
a
little
funny.
But
I
didn"t
want
to
look
fussy.
So
I
ate
the
whole
thing.
The
next
thing
I
knew
I
was
throwing
up
repeatedly."
On
Saturday,
Minissha
was
too
weak
to
travel
to
Pune
for
promotion.
But
she
was
happy
about
the
fact
that
Well
Done
Abba
was
getting
her
glowing
reviews.
“For
a
girl
who"s
come
from
the
outside
into
the
film
industry
it
feels
good
to
have
bagged
a
Shyam
Benegal
film.
I"m
proud
of
girls
like
Kangana
Ranaut
who
have
made
it
without
any
help
from
godfathers.
When
I
was
called
by
Mr
Benegal
I
walked
into
his
office
wearing
high
heels
and
a
chic
summer
dress.
Mr
Benegal
said
he
wanted
me
to
play
a
semi-rural
Hyderabadi
girl.
I
was
like,
do
I
look
rural
or
Hyderabadi
from
any
angle,
Sir?"
The
scene
seems
like
an
instant
replay
of
what
transpired
between
Shyam
Benegal
and
his
favourite
actress
Shabana
Azmi
when
35
years
ago
she
had
walked
into
his
office
to
audition
for
the
rural
Hyderabadi
girl"s
role
in
Ankur
carrying
pouty
supposedly
glamorous
portfolio
pictures.
Laughs
Minissha,
“Yes,
there
seems
to
be
a
karmic
connection
with
Shabanaji.
I"ve
just
done
a
film
where
I
play
a
Hyderabadi
girl
like
she
had
done
in
Ankur.
But
before
that
I
did
Honeymoon
Travels
Pvt
Ltd
where
I
actually
got
to
work
with
THE
Shabana
Azmi.
And
now
I"m
doing
a
film
called—hold
your
breath—Hum
Tum
Aur
Shabana
where
I
actually
get
to
play
a
girl
called
Shabana." She"s
all
praise
for
her
co-stars
whether
it"s
Abhay
Deol
or
Sammir
Dattani.
Chuckles
Minissha,
“Abhay
did
a
very
clever
thing
when
he
had
to
perform
the
tango
with
me
in
Honeymoon
Travels
Pvt
Ltd.
He
declared
he
was
an
awful
dancer
at
the
start.
We
soon
realized
that
wasn"t
true.
While
I
struggled
to
get
the
movements
right
with
my
two
left
feet,
Abhay
was
terrific.
I"ve
been
lucky
with
my
co-stars.
I
have
had
to
work
with
anyone
whom
I
didn"t
get
along
with.
Sammir
Dattani
and
I"ve
done
two
films
together.
Look
at
how
he
has
come
into
his
own
in
Well
Done
Abba."
Minissha
has
been
cast
as
the
sweet
girl
next
door
being
wooed
by
Tusshar
Kapoor
and
Shreyas
Talpade
in
Sagar
(Bheja
Fry)
Bellary"s
film
Hum
Tum
Aur
Shabana.
Says
Minissha,
“That
is
the
only
film
I"m
doing
right
now.
I
realized
while
doing
Well
Done
Abba
that
the
pleasure
of
doing
a
substantial
meaningful
role
with
actors
like
Boman
Irani
is
unmatchable.
I"m
here
to
be
an
actress.
And
now
I"ve
decided
I
won"t
get
tempted
to
sign
any
old
role
that
comes
my
way." Minissha
considers
Bachna
Ae
Haseeno
a
turning-
point
in
her
career.
“It
put
me
in
a
different
bracket.
When
I
started
my
career
with
Yahan
I
was
raw
but
I
got
a
kind
of
break
that
few
newcomers
get.
Bachna
Ae
Haseeno
put
me
many
steps
ahead."
She
admits
she
has
made
some
mistakes;
though
wearing
a
bikini
in
Sanjay
Gadhvi"s
Kidnap
was
not
one
of
them.
“It
was
a
stage
in
my
growth
as
an
actor.
I"ve
gone
from
bikini
to
a
burqa
milieu
in
Well
Done
Abba
and
I
think
I
haven"t
done
too
badly
for
myself."
She
resents
the
misconstrued
controversies
that
were
created
in
her
career.
“It
was
reported
that
I
backed
out
of
a
film
with
Ram
Vilas
Paswan"s
son.
They
made
such
a
hue
and
cry
over
it
when
it
wasn"t
true.
I
guess
one
lives
and
learns.
There
are
filmmakers
like
Shyam
Benegal
in
the
same
industry
as
the
proposal
makers."