The best of two worlds
Young and beautiful Sri Lankan born Indian actress
Pooja Umarshankar:
By Rosanne Koelmeyer Anderson
[email protected]
 Talk of Bollywood celebrities and who doesn’t go crazy: it is an
obsession, a fad....it gives a bit of zing and enlivens the passionate
hearts of the young at heart. What could be more rewarding than an
encounter with one of these celebrities after all.
But, her Fan Club would have been disappointed I’m sure to think that
she was back in Sri Lanka last Monday but had gone back to Bangalore
even before the word could actually get around...Yes, she was on a
flying visit to Sri Lanka to sign up as the Broadband Brand Ambassador
for the number one integrated communication service provider, SLT, Sri
Lanka Telecom’s Broadband Services.
The beautiful and unpretentious twenty three year old Sri Lankan born
Indian Kollywood and Mollywood celebrity dressed in a glamorous soft
pink and blue saree looked as soft as the morning dew; slim and shapely
she very eagerly obliged to pose for an exclusive photo shoot for the
Sunday Observer just outside the lobby of the Colombo Hilton last
Monday.
Pooja Umarshankar whose name became synonymous with contemporary
Sri-Lankan cinema with her portrayal of main roles in ‘Angelika’, ‘Asai
Mang Piyambanna’ and ‘Yaluvo’ the beauty who hails from the state of
Karanataka said as an avid internet user I look for reliability, speed
and economic benefits.
Not withstanding her boundless love for Sri Lanka as her mother is
Sinhalese and her father Tamil, coupled with her impressions of the
endless possibilities available with wire line broadband services the
young celebrity of international fame, Pooja Umarshankar gave her
commitment to assist SLT make its benchmark in Broadband services more
accessible to the people of Sri Lanka.
Beauty and brains combined, the MBA qualified young actress from
Mount Camel Convent Bangalore who says she learnt to speak Sinhala
faster than Tamil has been given call sheets for two more Sinhalese
movies, yet to be named.
 An epitome of what anyone would call ‘a perfect figure’ shapely
contours any woman would dream of possessing; the unassuming,
effervescent Pooja though rushed for time was available for a brief
interview.
It was incredible to hear her say “I live to eat; I don’t go on crash
diets just to survive in the industry. In fact, I have five meals a day
but cut down on carbs. You have to balance your diet , the skin needs a
lot of fruit and vitamins to keep it looking radiant” she said smilingly
which confirms the glow in her.
With many accolades and fourteen films to her tribute, at just 23
Pooja showed no interest of wanting to move into the Bollywood scene.
“You can’t do both simultaneously you will not do either properly; I
prefer to just concentrate on what I am doing at the moment.
I did ‘Angelika’ out of love for my grandparents and since then there
has been no looking back where Sri Lanka cinema is concerned. Angelika
was a glamorous and artistic film portraying a poignant love story
between a well-groomed son of an aristocrat and a beautiful daughter of
a caretaker of an estate with enchanting cinematography.
With her gracious disposition Pooja has secured two national awards
in award winning film director Bala’s film ‘Nankadul’ while the most
challenging role she will play in her career will be that of the blind
beggar which portrays the role of a village girl, shot in a village
setting and the scorching hot sand which actually burns her feet in her
latest film which she opted not to disclose just yet.
Not thinking of marriage for at least another five years; Pooja is
very enthusiastic about her new film and is bent on making it too a
great success. The restrictions posed on actresses after marriage in
India is most often quite a challenge and I’m scared to get into that
controversy.
So, staying single for a while is best says young up and coming
actress Pooja Umarshankar who completes four years in cinema with many
aspirations of reaching greater heights in the Hall of Fame.
Pix Priyantha Hettige |
