Kulraj addressed as Kareena on Mastang Mama

They will never stop calling Smriti Irani 'Tusli' even if Gautami Kapoor played 'Tulsi' in 'Kyunkii Saas Bhi Kabhi Bahu Thi'. And poor Amarr Upaddhyay no matter how many 'R's he added to his first name they still called him 'Mihir' whenever they saw him on the large screen.

And now Kulraj Randhawa who makes her large-screen appearance in new-director Vikram Singh's Mastang Mama finds herself facing a similar identity crisis. On the sets of the movie that started shooting earlier this month, everyone calls Kulraj 'Kareena' Not that she resembles the Kapoor in any way. But Kulraj played the title role in a hit soap called Kareena Kareena three years ago. And she's still remembered by that name!

Ruslaan Mumtaz who plays her leading man is amused and alarmed. "I didn't even know Kulraj has been on television. I'd wonder why everyone in the unit and even visitors on the sets kept calling her 'Kareena'. I thought it was because her character in Mastang Mama is as vivacious as Kareena Kapoor in Jab We Met. Later I got to know it was because she had played a girl called 'Kareena' on TV." Ruslaan has decided never to do television. "Even if it means being jobless I'd rather not do television. Imagine being identified with some character for all your life!"

On the plus side, Kulraj has learnt the value of time through television. Adds Ruslaan, "She works hard and she mixes on the sets like a buddy. In fact, Kulraj is my first buddy-co-star. Earlier with Hazel in Mera Pehla Pehla Pyar and Sheena in Tere Sang it was different. Kulraj is a buddy. In fact, Tanmay Cheda who plays my nephew and me constantly keep cadging her mobile to play video games on it. She doesn't mind. She is like one of the boys on the sets. I think that discipline comes from being on crowded television sets where actors don't have a chance to go back to their rooms between shots."