Drawn to the camera

First Step

An ace model having walked the ramp for some of the best names like J J Vallaya, Tarun Tahiliani, Abu Jani & Sandeep Khosla, Deepika Govind, Rocky S, Wendell Rodricks, Ritu Kumar, Malini Ramani, Satya Paul, Sabyasachi and Ritu Beri among others, and well-known as a VJ, she is all set to make her Bollywood debut with Hum Tum Shabana to be released on September 23. And as luck would have it, she gets to play a role she plays in real life — a model.

The cast includes Minissha Lamba, Tusshar Kapoor and Shreyas Talpade. She looks back at her journey and reminisces, “I was born and brought up in Bombay and am a true Bombay girl. I went to Bombay Scottish School and then to Jai Hind College. I was a very naughty child. My parents, especially my mother, were always worried about my future.

My sister was a top grade student, disciplined, and rarely punished, while I was the exact opposite. I thoroughly enjoyed school and I know that even if I had a chance, I would change nothing about it. I grew up watching my elder sister, Binal, take to the ramp and was fascinated by lights and camera; I too wanted to be in the spotlight.”

Her life changed when she auditioned in the then Lakme India Fashion Week and got selected. She has been a part of the Kingfisher calendar for two consecutive years, hosted three seasons of Get Gorgeous on Channel [V] and has even hosted her own show, Beach Diaries with VJ Pia.

Pia has also been a part of the adventure reality show, Fear Factor, and several music videos. Bollywood is a huge shift in her career but she is confident and excited about her film, Hum Tum Shabana. “My character in Hum Tum Shabana is named Rhea Dixit. She’s a successful model, confident and ready to go that extra mile to achieve her dreams. This movie seemed ideal as a debut project because somewhere, I connected with the character. The movie happened quite by chance when I was least expecting it.

It was a pleasant surprise and I couldn’t have asked for a better break.” She adds, “Director Sagar Ballary was on the lookout for a fresh face to portray Rhea. He happened to see me on Channel V when I was a VJ and believed I had potential. He invited me to attend the audition. I was a bit nervous but left the answer to faith. A few days later, Sagar got in touch with me to inform me that I had been selected to play the character of Rhea in the film!”

Bollywood has always been on Pia’s mind and she has consistently worked towards making it big in the industry. “I hope people take notice of me and that the film industry welcomes me wholeheartedly. I am meeting people, listening to scripts and hoping to sign many more films. I’m keeping my fingers crossed, waiting for life to surprise me,” she says. Pia enjoys any genre of cinema and is open to good scripts and roles that will challenge her as an actress; she believes that she is here to prove that she is more than just a pretty face.

She feels that apart from common elements like glamour, lights and camera, movies and modelling are very different. “From my personal experience, I would say that the film industry spoils you while the modelling industry teaches you to be tough.

Bollywood was always on my mind but my career as a model took off pretty much from the word go and therefore, my dream to be an actress took a back seat for a while. I like to concentrate and do whatever I choose to, to my best ability, and I wouldn’t have been able to juggle both the careers simultaneously.”

Also, she is unperturbed about the way models are perceived in the industry. “At the end of the day, your performance matters. Being a top model helps you get work, but your success is based only on your work. Period.”