Jacqueline Fernandez: I don't take body and slut-shaming to my heart!

Sri Lankan beauty Jacqueline Fernandez has made her fortune by starring in a string of Bollywood films. The actress, who entered Hindi filmdom with an unsuccessful film "Aladin" in 2009, rose to fame with movies like "Housefull", Murder 2" and "Race 2". After working with many established stars like Salman Khan, Akshay Kumar and Ranbir Kapoor, Fernandez is now gearing up for the release of her forthcoming film, "A Gentleman", featuring a comparatively new actor, Sidharth Malhotra. Before the movie arrives in cinemas on 25th August, our Mumbai correspondent, Mohnish Singh, catches up with the gorgeous actress for a candid conversation. Here're the excerpts from the conversation.

Tell us something about your character in your forthcoming film, "A Gentleman”.

I play Kavya in the film. She does this 9 to 5 job. She has no excitement in her life and finds it boring. She keeps on pushing herself to do things that are exciting. She has to bear Gaurav, who is really boring but safe kind of a guy. She keeps trying to push him to do things that are exciting because that is pretty much of her personality. Her life kind of changes when she meets Rishi.

So Rishi changes your life in the reel life. What kind of man would you choose in real life? 

It’s kind of tricky. I don’t like extreme of either. I would be more attracted to Rishi because this guy is more happening, mysterious and adventurous and then Gaurav, on the other hand, is responsible, serious and safe. He seems to be very polite. For me, it’s  just about having a  balance. It’s  important.

Your pole dancing has become the talk of the town. What do you have to say about it? 

It sounds funny but I wanted to do something different for the song. It was a party song and I wanted to spice it up. At the end of the day, I am someone who cannot go with doing the same thing repeatedly. When I went to Miami everybody was crazy about pole dancing. I thought it was very cool. There were competitions going on and there were people winning them. They go to the gyms where there is pole fitness. I got myself a mentor who taught me the whole thing. I found it very tiring. I continued with it and had a  lot of bruising. But it was fun working on it.

How much could you relate to the character you are playing in the movie?

I  relate a lot to my character. She is an outgoing girl and is more interested in her job. She is not the conventional type. She doesn't want to settle for the sake of it. She is just trying to  find her own way. She is a very modern  day girl.

You are also seen doing some high-octane action in the film for the first time. How would you describe your whole experience?

It was amazing as I love action. It’s sad but I  have always been a part of very big action films and didn’t perform the action in them. I enjoyed it so much as I had to use the gun for the first time. It's really amazing to do such stuff.

Did you undergo any kind of training to get the action sequences right?

Not really. I feel that it’s something I am very comfortable with and I was a tomboy in my real life. So that helped. My siblings and I had weird wrestling matches in the house. During my summer camp, I used to go for kickboxing and taekwondo. This stuff was quite simple.

In the recent times, a lot of Bollywood actresses have to face body shaming and slut shaming on social media and it's becoming rampant. How do you deal with all the negativity around you?

Someone’s  reflection of me by them is actually a reflection of them. I really don’t take it to heart. I feel somebody who does that have a lot of issues with themselves. There are such people who are doing that and with the freedom of speech, it sometimes gets nasty as they take it to heart and that goes to another level. It’s also about the effect that they are going to experience. Also, there are times where they go into a tizzy. It seems like your getting stressed out.

You have done action sequences and also a pole dance in the film but ultimately it is the pole dance which has become the talk of the town, not your action scenes.

I think pole dance and action are two different aspects. Both are full of adventure. When people saw the trailer and I were in a never-seen-before avatar, they actually liked it. It was interesting and it looked a lot cooler. It is a new thing for lots of people as pole dancing is not explored much in Bollywood. Poles have to be erotic.

Which is your favourite song from  “A  Gentleman”?   

I love the song  'Bandook' from the minute I heard it. It has lovely music.

The film has you playing the love interest of Sidharth. When will we see you as the main protagonist and in a women centric film?

I have no idea about that. I guess, a right script has to come along with a good director, as we are living in times where your box office and on-screen success is very unpredictable. The content is the king.