Knocked by Rocks

Detained for undeclared jewellery worth multiple lakhs,Minissha Lamba is just another girl with stars in her eyes still waiting to make it big in Bollywood.

In the year 2004,at Miranda House,in Delhi,there was a rare music competition that wouldn’t have Minissha’s name. Minisha then,without the extra ‘s’,belonged to a well-to-do family as her father worked in a Taj hotel. In 2002,when Channel [V launched its reality show to create a pop band called VIVA,Lamba made it to the Top 10. But it was acting that fascinated her. She always knew she would be a Bollywood star someday. Eleven films later,her most successful one was Bachna Ae Haseeno,Minissha remains a starlet — despite the recent high-profile red carpet walk at the 64 th Cannes Film festival. Just as the applause for dressing right on the red carpet ended,Lamba was in the news again — she was detained by Mumbai customs at the Chhatrapati Shivaji International Airport,with undeclared jewellery worth Rs 50 lakh. “But,she was never the daring type in college. In fact,she dressed simply,” says a former classmate from her college days.

“The only time she really broke rules was in second year of her English Honours course,when she skipped classes to attend rehearsals for her debut film,Yahaan,” she adds. Yahaan (2005),opposite Jimmy Shergill,was a commercial failure but critics liked her. Ever since,Minissha has stayed away from controversy — barring the rumoured affair with cricketer Sreesanth — and neither does she belong to any camp.

The Cannes trip,courtesy Seagram’s,an alcohol brand endorsed by Minissha,could have turned the tide for her— if she had stayed away from too many rocks. But,as the actress tweeted on Thursday evening,“All izzz well”.