If my film becomes a hit, I will have my T-shirt framed

Piaa Bajpai is happy for reasons more than one. On the one hand, her first Indie flick X ��� the film has been bestowed with the honour of opening the 11th South Asian International Film Festival (SAIFF) in New York and on the other, her Tamil film Nerungi Vaa Muthamidathe is all set to hit screens next month.
An excited Piaa says, ���Initially, when the offer to act in X came, I was a little unsure.But then, as I began working on it, my doubts started disappearing. Today, I am proud to have been a part of this film which has 11 segments directed by 11 directors. Each segment is interconnected with the other.��� Commenting on the segment in which she appears, she says, ���My portions have been directed by Hemant Gaba and I play a 17-year-old school girl in the film.���
Piaa says working on her Tamil film Nerungi Vaa Muthamidathe (NVM), a proper commercial entertainer, was equally interesting. ���This film showcases how a petrol strike can affect common people. It is a story about different people and how they meet at one point. In this film, I have this love and hate sort of relationship with my mom, played by Viji. After a point, I journey all alone,��� says Piaa confidently.
The actress��� confidence in the way the film has shaped up stems from the trust she has in the film���s director, Lakshmi. Says Piaa, ���People ask me how it is to work with a female director. It is like they are underestimating the power of being a woman. All I want to tell such people is that direction is the same, be it a male or a female. Lakshmi ma���am is a super strong woman and the way she handled the unit was just awesome.��� Known for her cheerful nature, Piaa cannot remain long without making others smile.
Ask her to narrate one incident during the making of the film that brought a smile to the faces of the unit and she says, ���I was shooting continuously for NVM. One day, I was trying to recite the title of the film in different ways to Shabbir (the film���s hero) when I said, ���Do you realize that I haven���t washed this T-shirt for the last 20 days?��� (I appear in the same costume in the film in a number of scenes). He asked me, ���Really? You haven���t washed your clothes for the last two schedules?��� I replied, ���If the T-shirt is washed, the continuity factor could get affected. So, despite my T-shirt smelling, I still continue to wear it.��� Shabbir replied with a wicked smile, ���Maybe that is why they have named the film, Nerungivaa Muthamidathe (Come close but don���t kiss),��� recalls Piaa and laughs.
���That is the dirtiest costume I have worn till today. But I still have that T-shirt with me. If my film becomes a hit, I will frame it and put it up in my bedroom,��� she signs off with a smile.