Her Christmas gift? A new address. "London is my new home," says Lisa Ray, who has shifted base to Big Ben city, "Of course, I miss some things about India — and some I don’t. But what I don’t miss at all is the celebrity circuit."
In other words, one of the best-known models in India has opted for anonymity, a few close friends and work as an actress on the global stage. Moreover, Lisa has a plan. "I have signed a long-term agreement with a production house in London which is signing on Indian talent — but not for token Asian roles in international films," she informs.
So, Lisa is imbibing the theatrical delights of London. "There is so much to learn," she offers, "I would love to do theatre. In fact, there is so much to learn that I am yet to realise how far I can go. Money is not so much an issue right now. I have a wider perspective of life."
And Lisa’s life’s been enhanced considerably by her brush with Hollywood stardom. "Glenn Close and Woody Harrelson were performing on the London stage," she reveals, "A few of my friends had business dealings with them and I ended up meeting Glenn and Woody. They are so accomplished, yet unaffected by their success. I realised that, for them, success is not about who notices them or who they get photographed with —they are doing theatre despite being paid next to nothing because they want to perform. A theatre director told me that you must be prepared to starve for your craft."
But Lisa might not have to starve yet. She has a handful of movies. Starting with Deepa Mehta’s Bollywood Hollywood . "It’s a fun film," says Lisa, "It was a great experience working with Deepa and Rahul (Khanna), who is a real charmer with the most dry sarcastic wit ever. He had me in splits!"
Lisa herself hopes to keep the audience in splits considering that Bollywood Hollywood and her next film, The Arrangement , are comedies. "But humour is really tricky. While I play it straight in Deepa’s film, the comedy in The Arrangement is of the Buster Keaton-Charlie Chaplin variety."
The lady’s career graph moved in only one direction after she touched down in India around 12 years ago: up, up and away. Of course, her half-Polish-half-Bengali looks helped matters. She was a hit right from first day, first ad campaign. Tinsel town was a natural progression. Temptation came and Lisa signed on the dotted line for Kasoor. More recently, she has added another feather to her filmi cap with Bollywood Hollywood . Reams of reel later, it is her spontaneity in front of the camera which comes shining through.
Meanwhile, Lisa has bid adieu to Bollywood... and it looks like India’s ad world and modelling circuit have suffered a loss. Like she says, "No more modelling and commercials, please." Among other things, Lisa Ray likes to have the last word.