This story is from April 16, 2014

My brother gave us time to cope with the loss: Juhi Chawla

In Kolkata for an event, Juhi Chawla spoke about IPL, her life and career in B���wood
My brother gave us time to cope with the loss: Juhi Chawla
In Kolkata for an event, Juhi Chawla spoke about IPL, her life and career in B���wood
The ever-smiling Juhi Chawla, who was in town for a Poila Boisakh event, spoke to us about how she misses IPL at Eden Gardens, about coping with the loss of her brother and her desire to work with Salman Khan.
Excerpts:
How is it to be back in Team Kolkata���s homeground?
Lovely! And I am sad we won���t be playing all matches here, because this is the time of the year when we make Kolkata our home for all the action.
I am getting nostalgic. The tournament is starting today, and there is a lot of excitement in Dubai and UAE. But it is kind of quiet here, which is something I don���t like.
What expectations do you have from Team Kolkata this time?
They better do well! Every year I hope, pray and wish they do. Sabki izzat daon pe hai bhai!

Will you miss the Kolkata crowd in the Middle East?
Of course! Because nowhere is there a stadium like Eden Gardens. It���s so huge that every time we come here, we are like, haven���t we got the biggest stadium? Any other stadium holds maximum 30,000-40,000 people, and Eden Gardens, when full, is overwhelming! Every time we come, we see people here are so passionate about cricket. When the team wins, they are all there to cheer and when it doesn���t win, they get angry and line the streets demanding explanations. So the team belongs to the people here. They want their team to come on the top and make the whole of Bengal proud.
Now there is a football, boxing and even a kabaddi league. Do you think it���s all because of IPL?
It must have been an inspiration. I know when IPL started and went ballistic in the first year itself. People from other sports said how come we don���t have something like this? I guess the time has come for hockey, tennis and other sports to get similar recognition. Otherwise, the funds don���t come in, and the sport doesn���t get encouraged. At least parents will now not tell their kids, khelne mat jao, padhai karo. Now they will say khelne jao, kya pata kal footballer ban jao! As for my kids, I would be happy with whatever they take up.
Do you think the football league will be as popular as IPL?
Kids all over India, including my son, are either playing cricket or football all the time. So I guess it can be a huge success.
Has corruption taken the sheen off IPL?
I hope not. Because our team is totally clean and I pray the scandals doesn���t affect the whole league. I hope the whole basket doesn���t get spoilt just because of a few rotten eggs.
Your last film, Gulaab Gang, did not really get box-office success. Disappointed?
Yes, because I expected it to do better. The promos were so well received that I guess I expected too much. But everybody was pleasantly surprised by my villainous avatar. I think in my entire career if I have ever received so many compliments, it���s been for this.
So would you like to play such a character again?
Not the same thing, but definitely something which is as interestingly written and directed.
Do we get to see you on the big screen anytime soon again?
Hey bhagwan! You better see me on the big screen again because that���s my work. Right now, I did a guest appearance in a Punjabi film, little roles here and there, but as for something major, it���s still to come.
Madhuri Dixit-Nene, Sonali Bendre and others have now taken to judging reality TV shows. Are you game for that?
At some point I felt that arre you are just sitting there and commenting, so what are you exactly doing? But on the other hand, you get to see so much talent that it���s inspiring! When you see those people performing, you are like hum bhi kuch karein. So it���s very inspiring to be on a show. I could do that.
Tell us about your on-off relations with Shah Rukh Khan.
I have known him for very long. We have worked in films and outside. But yes, today we don���t meet that often. We mostly meet during IPL. During IPL, we are very pally; once it���s over, we go our own ways. That���s why it is on and off.
You have worked with Shah Rukh and Aamir Khan, but never Salman. Is that because Bollywood is divided into camps?
I would really like to work with Salman. He is a very interesting person. But I don���t know when, where, how. As for camps, it���s not something I am aware of.
Your brother passed away a month back. Has time healed things?
When my brother���s haemorrhage happened, I was in Kolkata for a match. The match hadn���t even ended that I left for home because my kids had school next day etc. I landed in Mumbai at 1 am on a deserted airport and got the news that my brother was in the hospital. I was scared out of my mind. I couldn���t even believe the news. I go to the hospital and somebody was telling me how he was brought in. It was very scary. The next two months, I was a wreck. I didn���t know whether my brother was going to live or not. The doctors said there was no hope. I don���t know how we pulled through those months, those years. I think he didn���t go at that time because I would have been broken to accept all that. He gave us time to come to terms with the loss.
End of Article
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