I have been a rebel: Huma Qureshi

Beauty with brains, that’s what we would call the gorgeous Huma Qureshi. Unlike, other dolled up actresses, this feisty Delhi girl showed us yesterday that she can not only look beautiful on screen but off it as well with her charming eloquence. No wonder she was a natural celeb choice at Vibhyor Tikiya’s book launch ‘Dada’ where she shared space with the author and ad-whiz Prahlad Kakkar. Tellychakkar.com caught up with the actress in a freewheeling chat. What do you think about book? I think it is a very special book. It is the journey of a person who becomes a Dada. He is a rebel, a fighter and finally emerges as a winner. From what I have read, I feel it is a great book and I can identify myself with it especially because I have been a rebel myself. So to get into Bollywood you had to rebel you mean? Yes, absolutely. I come from a conservative Muslim family in Delhi. My dad runs a restaurant there while my mom is a housewife. They were not initially very keen on me becoming an actress. So that’s where the rebel or the fighter in me emerged. I was sure about what I wanted to do in life and pursued it honestly. Every rebel finds a support system in a special person who lends unconditional support. Did you have any such special person in Delhi? (Smiles) Yes. I would say it has to be my brother Saqib Saleem (actor) who was very supportive and encouraged me. Later on, my family after their initial reluctance also backed me to the hilt. Here in Mumbai, it has to Anurag Kashyap whose film Gangs of Wasseypur gave me recognition. Would you love to write a book yourself? If yes, then what would your preferred topic be? Oh, I love children and would like to write a book based on their lives. I am not so much into these adult centric novels. I love kid stuff and yes would really like to write something on kids. When we talk about Dada, Bollywood too has many of them. Who do you think is the real Dada of Bollywood? (Laughs) Oh my God! Bollywood Dada...Well there are so many… Abhi aise naam nahi bata sakti (I can’t really reveal names) It’s Independence Day tomorrow. How are you planning to celebrate? This year I am associated with a cause. I will be performing at a charity show organized by an NGO and the proceeds collected would be given to the flood victims of Uttarakhand and I hope and urge everyone to contribute for the same in any little way that they can. That’s how I will be spending the first half of the day while in the second I will be with my family and friends.