A brush with colours

Swedish-Greek actor Elli AvrRam made a mark in Bollywood with 'Mickey Virus' and'Kis Kisko Pyaar Karoon' and has appeared in many reality shows on dance. She haswalked the ramp for some of the biggest names in the fashion circuit. The actor has alsoessayed interesting characters in 'Naam Shabana' and 'Poster Boys'. She recently hostedthe 'Great Indian Laughter Challenge'. Elli will make her debut in the Kannada film industrywith 'Butterfly' which is the Kannada remake of 'Queen'.

Being in the profession that I am, I can never hope to get a weekend all to myself. There have been times when I have worked continuously. If I am lucky then I get a Sunday off.

And when I do I make the best of it. I indulge in everything that I enjoy doing in my free time which could be anything from cooking, sleeping, painting to just lazing about in my house.

If I have the luxury of a Saturday and Sunday off then the first thing I do is to catch up on all the lost sleep. I love sleeping and I also find that it has a therapeutic effect on me. Whenever I have some free time, I try to spend it with my closest friend Shweta Rohira.

She is my soul sister and we spend a lot of time shopping, eating out and always wind up our outings with a movie. I have also had my mother Maria come over from Greece on some of the weekends and whenever she is here, I make sure that we do some fun things together.Cooking is another favourite pastime.

I love cooking variations of 'Thai Wok' which is a mix of noodles and chicken. I don't mean to sound boastful but I make some of the best chicken dishes. I also experiment with salads. My salad always has cucumber, lettuce and tomato. I also add a generous dose of a herb called oregano. My salads are never complete without adding this herb.

I have also been painting for as long as I can remember. I have a separate room in my house where I paint. It gives me a lot of peace and helps me disconnect from the rest of the world. I haven't gone to any classes but I paint whatever pops up in my mind. I enjoy working with oil paint but the only drawback is that it takes a long time to dry.

Most of my mornings start with a cup of black tea or green tea. I have a special teapot and cup set apart for this. I drink as many cups of tea and still never get bored of it. I also hit the pool whenever I can with my friends. I spend lazy afternoons in the pool and relax there with a book. When I was back home I loved playing football and still do so once in a while. But now I have taken to mixed martial arts in a big way and this leaves me with very little time to do anything else.

I also never miss exercising even if it is a Sunday. My days are never complete without hitting the gym.

While I pack my weekends with everything that I love doing I also make it a point to spend some quiet time.

This time is used to reflect on my journey so far both as an actor and as a person. This "me time" helps me evolve and look at everything in a positive way.

Actors lead a very rushed life but I have learnt how to take each day as it comes and be grateful for everything that I have today.