Lunch with Hunar Hali

Check the slideshow above Meeting the good-looking and talented television actor Hunar Ali was on my list for sometime – actually, since the time I watched her play the lead of Chhal Sheh aur Maat on Colors channel followed by her negative role as Nandini in Ek Boond Ishq on Life OK and the jilted lover on Jee Le Zara on Sony Television though her first show Karol Bagh was on Zee TV. I think she is one of the few actors whose spectrum of channels extends to so many. As with TV actors, my fixing up the interview with her was a whirlwind one – she informed me late at night that she was free the next day as I went about fixing up a restaurant to host us and Mumbai Tawa in Malad it was. And what followed was a bit of a fiasco as Hunar turned out to be a foodie and our host turned hostile by dishing out limited stuff which was low on taste too. Hunar’s order for Tawa Surmai came with bones and we humbly requested it to be brought back after removing them and found not all were removed. Nevertheless, we got so engrossed in our conversation and my tete-a-tete with the chirpy actor was fruitful making us overlook the not so impressive dishes of Tawa ka Bagheecha and Paneer Tikka Masala served to us. Talking about her foray into TV serials, the Delhiite claims, “I was like a lost soul. Came to Mumbai on a vacation and went to a TV show set as a visitor,” adding when she went back to Delhi, “Then I got a call to audition for an upcoming show.” Having taken part in plays in college days she was well-versed in acting. After Karol Bagh, she came to Mumbai and found herself in quite a few soaps with diverse characters ranging from lead to shades of grey to negative, as she puts it, “I hate to be typecast in a certain mould and I don’t plan things.” The stylish girl took on Nandini’s character in Ek Boond Ishq “Mainly because mine is a negative lead, playing wife to a eunuch which is so very different and that too only after making sure who was playing Kalavati.” She bonds well with versatile actor Vishwajeet Pradhan aka Kalavati and co-star Chavi Pandey (positive lead). Ask her the secret of her glow, “Always be in love! Love keeps you glowing and energetic,” expounds the lovely actor, “It could be with anything or person, but be in love,” she asserts. The slim lady says she is not diet conscious but loves salads and cannot skip dinner for the fact that, “I don’t get sleep if I forego dinner.” Talk about spooky things and Hunar reveals the abnormality she went through as Aditi Jaiswal, “Playing a spirit in Chhal- Sheh aur Maat made me go through a nightmare. I used to be awake till 5am and call up my mom.” But nothing to beat what I am going to tell you now: The dainty Hunar is superstitious and a huge fan of Jennifer Aniston. She reveals the similarity between both of them, “Whatever Jennifer did in a movie happened to her in real life. Just like the way it used to happen with Jennifer, so it did with me.” In her show Grihasti, her reel life father Kiran Kumar passes away and around the same period, her dad passed away too. When she was shooting for Karol Bagh in West Delhi, the scene consisted of problems in her house and in real life it entailed some legal problems in her house in Delhi. In Ek Boond Ishq, in a dream sequence, her face had to be shown as marred and actually on the day of the shoot, she developed rashes on her face and the shoot had to be postponed. The title Jee Le Zara has brought to her life positive and lovely feelings! On that happy note we taste Phirni which is surprisingly good. With lots of pleasantries later we take leave of each other and sweet Hunar, for being so gracious, I owe you a treat in a hi-end place next time. Rapid Fire Qs with Hunar Foodie... Fave cuisine..... dessert…. Junk food Yes! Chinese….. Cheesecake….. Pizza. Can you cook… Yes, I can make good chicken dish and pasta. Will you enter Bigg Boss? Any other reality shows you would like to be a part of... I am a private person so Bigg Boss is not my cup of tea. Yes to Khatron ke Khiladi, provided the bugs don’t bite me. If not an actor..... A housewife. Shopoholic….. Very very! I go to buy my base make-up things and end up buying an outfit. Brand conscious… Yes. Single or dating? Hmmm… Beauty secret… Love keeps you rejuvenated (now I know the previous answer) But you never know what will happen tomorrow…so it’s better not to reveal….at any given time just be in Love!!! (Hunar has her wardrobe overflowing with clothes and when a new lot arrives, she gives away the previous lot in charity) Don’t leave the house without… Debit cards. I am always out of cash. Stressbuster… Baking cakes. I have baked cakes for many events including friends’ birthdays. Your dream destination... Wishing Fountain in Rome. (besides fashion capitals of Milan, Venice & Paris) You are paranoid about… Being unsuccessful professionally. Your are obsessed with… Nightsuits. I am always in pyjamas. One thing nobody knows about you… I don’t get sleep if I skip dinner.