For Jacqueline Fernandez, the Housefull franchise has become like family. “From Housefull 1 to 3, I have been in all of them, and Housefull 3 is the most exciting of them all,” she says.
“I got to work with Akshay Kumar in a full-fledged role here. It’s a comedy, and all of us had loads of fun. Lisa, Nargis and I, had a lot of girl bonding. In London, Abhishekh Bachchan being a foodie helped us locate the best restaurants,” she adds.
Jacqueline no longer believes that she has a glam doll image. “Things have changed a lot in the industry. It’s no more about sitting around, fashionably clad or being a glam doll. In fact directors have become very demanding, they always look out for commercial actresses who can perform comedy as well emotional roles.”
She adds, “I am enjoying this phase of my life. Nothing has come easy for me. But unlike my earlier days, now I have to live up to the expectations of my directors as well as my fans.
Earlier I would merely learn my lines and say them. Now I have to get everything right, even for a five-minute role I see to it that I have a proper script…and I need to do my workshops as well. It’s an interesting phase as I am exploring myself to the maximum. I have to improve my dancing skills as well.”
Does she feel the pressure? “Not at all. Instead I feel blessed that I have got the best of songs – Chitti kallayian ve (from Roy), Hangover (from Kick) etc. Now I want to make some changes. You cannot keep repeating the same thing. Unless you bring in changes in your performance, people will find it monotonous.”
Jacqueline says that one person she can always fall back on in the industry is Sajid Nadidadwala. “My confidant in the film industry is none other than Sajid Nadidadwala. He has seen me debut in films with my item number. Most of the films have been under his production house. When I need advice I always look up to him. Sonam and I are good pals too.”
“I became a model at 16. This would fetch me a few dinars. I remember my first pocket money must have been around '800-1000. But this helped me buy my first cell phone. Also, I bought a ticket to London for myself at 16; that was my first trip to London. I enjoyed the trip — shopping, travelling and eating,” she concludes.
