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FIRST PERSON: The Meera mantra
Every human being is different but there is something unique about Meera, which cannot be expressed simply through words. Though Meera appears to be a typical Lollywood heroine, full of contradictions and controversies, she packs an amazing punch where style and grace are concerned. Sitting in her luxurious drawing room, one is impressed by the fact that at a young age Meera has achieved so much. Her bungalow is one of the most luxurious on the block.
Attired in casual clothes, the Lollywood temptress walked in looking rather different (read less glamorous) than how we usually see her on the big screen. Beginning the chit-chat session we ask her about her latest controversy. Meera was recently criticized harshly, for accepting an invitation to the Bollywood Awards in New York. And though she praised her hosts over there, Meera received a lot of flak from the critics over here for betraying this nation at a time when India and Pakistan are at loggerheads. But the best was yet to come. After the Bollywood hangama, reports started filing in that Meera was thinking of tying the knot with a Hindu businessman based in India. Meera’s reply:
“I received the Bollywood invitation asking me to perform at the awards ceremony a few months back. They always call a Pakistani artist and I suppose this year they wanted me. Last year it was Reema who was dancing in front of them. I was treated with the utmost respect and was shown no discrimination whatsoever. I got the same reception from Salman Khan, Sukhbir, A R Rehman, Jeetandra, etc. I performed on Shazia Manzoor’s Lagay na ya dil and the audience loved it. The organizers were so impressed that they let me perform more than once. Reema, during her reception, got only one chance. Besides, I was also asked to give away the best actress award, which I did, to Urmilla Mantodkar.”
‘I am not a hypocrite and I will never say that I will not work there. I will definitely work for the Indian cinema but it is not possible right now with the existing situation. When the deadlock is broken, I will move next door, to greener pastures’
Meera even claims that she was offered roles in some Bollywood movies from Indian directors.
“Karan Johar has invited me to Mumbai and I also got lots of offers to come and do movies in Bollywood.”
Is Meera interested in working for the Indian film industry?
“I am not a hypocrite and I will never say that I will not work there. I will definitely work for the Indian cinema but it is not possible right now with the existing situation. When the deadlock is broken, I will definitely move next door, to greener pastures.” And what about the rumour that you are tying the knot with a Hindu businessman?
“There is no such engagement,” she replies emphatically. “I can never think of marrying a Hindu man.”
But why did she announce it at a press conference in New York, which was attended by all the Pakistani correspondents?
“It’s true that I called a press conference in New York but it was not to announce any shadi. I called the press meeting to clear some baseless allegations about me performing a mujra in some New York hotel. During the press conference I got into an argument with some of the journalists there, and they, instead of giving my views, printed false reports about my getting engaged. Let me tell you that I will not be marrying for the next five years, at least. I am at the peak of my career and I want to concentrate fully on my on future.”
Reema and Meera are two stars who are constantly at war. Last month they announced a truce at a press conference, which ended after just five minutes. Reema blamed Meera! She said that when she was hugging Meera after the conference, Meera whispered that this was a forced hug and that Reema didn’t deserve it.
“Reema is the biggest liar in the world. I would never make such a remark to anyone but I’ll make an exception now where Reema is concerned. The room was full of journalists at the time so how could I say such a silly thing. Let me tell you that I have lost almost five million rupees because of Reema. It is the amount that I could have received from the roles in films which I refused for her sake. She is a real conspirator but I have always ignored her behaviour because I don’t want to waste my time on such useless things. I am successful only because of my acting skills and professionalism. I want to work in the film industry but she (Reema) wants to indulge in politics. That is why she has not been working for the last two years.”
Four years back Meera shocked everyone when she publicly confessed to committing a sin, confirming it even now.
“I confess to all my sins because of my conscience. I want to have a clear conscience. Self-criticism is not common in our society that is why everybody was shocked with what I said about myself. I tell you that I belong to a very humble family. My mother is an educated woman who has worked in the Education Department. I never went to an English medium school. It was a small school but I received a good education from there. My mother also made sure that I was very well disciplined. When I entered the limelight there were lots of challenges for me. You know I hated wearing semi-nude dresses while recording songs. But this is now part and parcel of my profession. Sometimes I think quitting is the best thing, but then I would like to think of myself as an actress who entertains millions of people, so why not keep acting for as long as possible.”
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