Her last co-star was Ed Harris, no less, within the psychological thriller Man On A ledge. Pooja Kumar who straddles two continents and cinema in Tamil, Telugu, Hollywood and likewise American television isn't too proud of the truth that her new film Vishwaroop has the hero performing the classical Indian dancing, and that too under the guidance of the redoubtable Pandit Birju Maharaj.
Pooja who's a trained classical dancer apparently expressed a want to do a place of dancing. The request, we hear, was politely but firmly turned down.
When quizzed concerning the the intense absence of a few dancing in her role Pooja laughed, `Well I'D have liked to bop. I'm a trained Kathak, Bharat Natyam and Kuchipudi dancer. I inherited a penchant for dancing from my mother who was from Lucknow.
She kicked the bucket. But she left this yearning in me to continue my training in dance. There would've been no greater pleasure for me than to turn my dancing skills in Vishwaroop. But it's Kamal Sir who got to bop in Vishwaroop. `
Pooja who's a US-based model and actress says, `Kamal Sir is an establishment. There's such a lot I've learnt by simply observing him. To get to work with him was a dream come true. `
Pooja says she gets offered roles within the US that aren't culture-specific. `I guess more parts are being written within the West for non-Caucasian actresses. For an episode of popular American series Chuck Versus The Balcony I played a 'Hinjew' a mix of a Hindu and a Jew. So the permutations being thrown up within the movies abroad are quite challenging for an actor. I REALLY LIKE it. `
What was it like moving from one renowned actor Ed Harris to a different Kamal Haasan?
`That's what I benefit from the most about my global career. I AM GETTING to share sceeen space with someone of Ed Harris' caliber after which I'M working with some as extraordinary as Kamal Haasan. And mind you, it isn't a small irrelevant role in Vishwaroop. I'M a part of the principle drama. `
Pooja speaks fluent Hindi. So she has dubbed all her lines in Vishwaroop, though not for the Tamil version of the film.
Recalling the ordeal with a shudder she says, `I can't speak Tamil. I needed to mug up all my lines in Tamil after which also memorize everyone else's lines too. `
