Priyanka plays tough bodyguard in 'Drona'

Remember those Mata Hari-Catwoman comic book heroines? Bollywood's Priyanka Chopra harks back to the comic book heroine of yore in Goldie Behl's "Drona", a la Uma Thurman in "Kill Bill".

It's a FX spectacle done up in the comic strip mould with Abhishek Bachchan playing a bespectacled nerd in the US.

"And guess what? I play Abhishek's bodyguard. It's a real wacky role, and a first of its kind since we've never had the leading lady 'protecting' the hero... unless we remember Hema-ji in those hunterwalli movies like 'Jyoti' in which she looked after the hero," Priyanka told IANS.

No wonder she is often looked on as the new millennium Hema. "Really?" Priyanka laughed. "I'm flattered. My entire look in 'Drona' is very virile and aggressive."

Priyanka learnt a special strain of the martial arts for her role in the action drama.

"I had learnt some kung fu for 'Don'. But this is different. It's a full-on action movie for me, with kicks and somersaults galore. I quite enjoyed the cuts and bruises."

She agrees her "Drona" look and body language are unlike anything she has done before. Quite like what stylist Anaita Shroff did with Aishwarya Rai in "Dhoom 2".

"Yeah, we've the same stylist. But my character is more action-oriented. In fact, for a change it's the leading lady doing more of the bossing than the hero."

While she has been staying away from signing new films, Priyanka has been doing a lot of ads.

"I've been taking the time before my next bunch of assignments making money through ads and live shows. What I do next will have to take me beyond 'Drona'."

Indo-Asian News Service