2008
was
an
eventful
year
for
Amrita
Rao.
She
started
off
with
My
Name
Is
Anthony
Gonsalves
which
in
spite
of
not
doing
well
at
the
box
office,
at
least
helped
showcase
a
different
(read
glam)
side
of
hers.
A
special
appearance
in
Shaurya
followed
but
the
role
was
so
small
that
it
went
relatively
unnoticed.
However,
she
bounced
back
with
Welcome
To
Sajjanpur
where
in
her
'gaon
ki
gori'
role,
she
went
on
to
win
hearts
all
over
again.
From
a
village
setting,
she
graduated
to
playing
a
small
time
girl
in
Victory
which
is
now
finally
getting
ready
to
hit
the
screens
this
Friday.
Even
though
the
film
primarily
belongs
to
Harman
Baweja
and
the
dozens
of
cricketers
who
have
consented
to
be
a
part
of
the
project,
Victory
does
promise
to
have
something
meaty
for
Amrita
Rao
also
to
showcase
her
acting
skills.
The
pretty
girl
with
a
characteristic
laugh
gets
on
a
free
wheeling
chat
with
us
as
she
talks
about
Victory
being
primarily
a
Harman
Baweja
film
and
how
he
was
fully
prepared
for
the
role
before
facing
the
camera.
Amrita,
first
things
first,
there
have
been
quite
a
few
talks
about
real
life
references
for
Harman's
character
in
the
film.
Yuvraj,
Dhoni
-
number
of
names
have
been
thrown
around!
Do
you
want
to
shed
light
on
this?
Also,
were
you
too
given
any
reference
points
when
you
read
through
the
script?
Let
me
say
that
Victory
is
a
Vijay
Shekhawat
story
that
could
speak
of
every
cricketer
who
hails
from
a
small
town
and
goes
on
to
be
a
part
of
the
Indian
cricket
team.
The
film
talks
about
any
aspiring
cricketer
who
rises
to
the
top.
And
no,
even
I
didn't
receive
any
reference
points
before
the
shoot.
I
play
the
character
of
a
medical
student
from
a
small
town
who
is
a
friend
of
this
young
boy
who
goes
on
to
be
a
cricketer.
However,
in
the
process
of
getting
rich
and
famous,
he
starts
losing
his
bearings.
I
act
as
his
conscience
when
he
is
down
in
the
dumps.
So
how
did
you
go
about
approaching
the
role?
It
was
quite
interesting
because
I
could
easily
identify
with
Vijay's
character
here.
In
real
life,
I
have
some
shades
of
him
because
I
have
gained
reasonable
popularity
and
hence
have
to
watch
every
step
that
I
take
in
my
life.
I
come
from
a
profession
which
is
so
challenging
and
demanding.
The
whole
world
judges
you
on
every
move
of
yours
and
I
realize
that
how
important
it
is
to
be
surrounded
by
good
company
of
real
friends.
There
are
chances
of
fake
people
around
you
who
could
be
responsible
for
you
being
pulled
down.
You
sound
emotional
about
the
importance
of
real
friends...
That's
right,
because
there
are
only
a
few
who
could
call
one.
These
are
the
real
friends
who
matter
most
to
you
because
eventually
they
bring
with
them
positive
influences.
How
eventually
you
are
going
to
transfer
such
positive
influences
in
your
work
is
something
that
is
of
utmost
importance.
In
this
sense,
I
am
playing
that
other
side
in
Vijay's
life
who
tries
to
bring
to
him
those
positive
influences.
Since
I
could
identify
Vijay's
situation
very
well
and
empathize
with
what
he
was
going
through,
it
became
an
interesting
experience.
So
what
was
that
strong
factor
in
Victory
that
made
you
sign
the
film?
Its
script
and
the
canvas.
For
the
first
time
in
Bollywood
history,
there
is
this
film
coming
which
literally
has
45
international
sports
people
coming
together.
In
Manmohan
Shetty,
we
have
one
of
the
biggest
producers
associated
with
the
project.
And
then
of
course
there
is
Harman.
Clearly,
Victory
had
number
of
reasons
for
me
to
go
for
the
film.
You
have
worked
in
around
10
odd
films
while
for
Harman
it
was
just
his
second
film.
Did
you
two
have
a
mutual
bond
that
allowed
you
to
give
him
suggestions
or
point
out
areas
of
improvements
due
to
your
prior
experience?
I
didn't
actually
have
to
come
up
with
suggestions
since
Harman
himself
comes
from
an
industry
background.
He
has
assisted
his
father
and
wasn't
a
newcomer
at
all
when
he
worked
in
Victory
or
for
that
matter
Love
Story
2050.
He
was
very
much
aware
about
the
whole
operation
and
the
works.
He
was
fully
prepared
when
he
stepped
in
to
shoot
for
Victory.
This
is
why,
never
once
did
I
feel
that
I
had
to
interfere
or
help
him.
You
seem
to
be
impressed
with
your
co-star...
I
truly
am
because
he
is
so
very
good.
I
will
give
him
100%
marks
for
his
act
in
the
film;
he
is
just
so
correct
there.
I
didn't
once
find
him
conscious
or
nervous.
I
have
worked
with
so
many
established
actors
but
even
when
I
was
working
with
him;
it
all
seemed
just
the
same.
He
is
very
energetic
and
has
a
great
sense
of
humour.
He
keeps
everyone
laughing
on
the
sets
but
once
the
director
begins
to
call
the
shots,
he
knows
when
to
get
serious
and
perform.
Story first published: Thursday, January 29, 2009, 13:53 [IST]