(((Okay – this regional beauty queen was arrested for allegedly distributing a porn DVD of herself. She denied this and doesn't appear to be the woman in the footage, but now she's appearing as the lead actress in a docu-drama movie about herself as a woman who allegedly appears in a porn DVD.)))
Link: Cybernoon.com.
My boyfriend has full faith in me and ready to marry me
Friday, June 22, 2007 10:43:23 IST
ANARA GUPTA tells JYOTHI VENKATESH that it was very tough to relive those harrowing days of humiliation and torture imposed on her for no reason or rhyme
What is your role in the film ‘Miss Anara’?
I play a role based on my own life. I play Anara Gupta. It is the story of my life. I play the role of the innocent girl who was taken into police custody for allegedly acting in a pornography film but acquitted later when the forensics laboratory in Hyderabad testified that it was not her. Incidentally the case is still pending though the cops who arrested me have been suspended.
What do you have to say to the allegation that you are trying to cash in on your private life?
Initially when the producer K.K Yadav who met me in Jammu offered me the role, I had said no but when he convinced me that I should come forward to make a film on my life so that it can prove to be an eye opener to other helpless victims like me to stand up and fight for their rights, I relented and agreed to act in the film.
What is the USP of the film ‘Miss Anara’?
It is for the first time that a real life victim is playing the title role. It was not Phoolan Devi but Seema Biswas who had played the title role of ‘Bandit Queen’. I think it is for the first time that a real life person is acting a reel role.
What message does the film set out to drive home?
No one knows what exactly happened with me. The actual truth should be brought out in the open. When I was ready to talk, a stay was ordered and I was silenced.
How tough is it to re-enact your own role?
It was very tough to relive those harrowing days of humiliation and torture imposed on me for no reason or rhyme. Though I try to forget the past, the trauma keeps on haunting me. My eyes swell with tears every time I live those harrowing times. As an actor, I gave my 100% to every shot because I am passionate about acting.
In what way will ‘Miss Anara’ be different from Mahesh Bhatt’s ‘Kalyug’?
The base of ‘Kalyug’ and ‘Miss Anara’ is the same because the plot revolves around the blue CD but the story is different. ‘Miss Anara’ will be more realistic and hard-hitting.
Is it true that B.R. Ishara was slated to direct the film earlier?
B.R. Ishara was to direct but since his health does not permit him to shoot the film at a break neck speed, the producer roped in Yogesh Bharadwaj who had directed ‘Shabnam Mausi’.
Was acting always on the cards as far as you were concerned?
When I was in the nursery, I used to dance to music all the time. Though I became Miss Jammu, I had always wanted to become an IAS officer or a doctor.
Why was the film not shot in Jammu, which was actually the backdrop of the real life story?
Since it has been proved that the cops were responsible for framing me in the case, the producer did not want to take any chance by shooting in the valley....
(((The original case is still in the courts because, in India, the case is always still in the courts.)))
