Suniel Shetty says I'm India's Goldie Hawn: Sophie Chaudhary

New Delhi, Jan 3 (IANS) Singer-actress Sophie Chaudhary is working with Suniel Shetty in Inder Kumar's comic caper 'Daddy Cool' and says her co-star feels she is like Oscar award-winning actress Goldie Hawn.

'Suniel calls me the Goldie Hawn of India. He says, like her, even I am very sexy, cute and funny,' Sophie told IANS in an interview.

Sophie, who was recently in the capital to perform at a New Year's Eve function, started her career as a pop singer with the girl band 'Sansara', but gained popularity as an MTV VJ.

After her stint on television, Sophie moved to the big screen and featured in films like 'Pyaar Ke Side Effects' and 'Aggar'.

'Singing is my biggest passion, but being a VJ gave me a big name in India when I shifted base to Mumbai from London. Being a VJ is great fun. It's a wonderful job for youngsters. It gives you exposure - when you travel, you gain confidence and you also earn a fan following. But it's not a career you can have for life,' said Sophie.

'I enjoy singing and acting, so I took it up. As a singer I enjoy my stage shows, acting is a new challenge for me. It's exciting, great fun and you wake up as a different person every day,' she added.

Sophie, who is trying to get a foothold in the film industry, was recently seen in an item number in Sanjay Dutt starrer 'Kidnap'. But she is not afraid of being typecast as an item girl.

'The song I did in 'Kidnap' was my first item number, so I've no fear of being typecast. I did that because I can't say no to either Sanjay Dutt or Sanjay Gadhvi (director of 'Kidnap'). I guess my biggest gain from the song was a compliment from Farah Khan. She doesn't compliment anyone, but she came up to me and said that I look insanely hot in the film,' said Sophie.

Speaking on the year gone by, Sophie says the highlight was her shoot with her idol, Rishi Kapoor.

'I got an opportunity to do a song and a few scenes with him in a Bobby Bedi film, which is slated to release in 2009. The whole experience was wonderful,' said a delighted Sophie.

The singer-VJ-actress is looking forward to a brighter New Year with her upcoming projects that include 'Daddy Cool', 'Aa Dekhein Zara' with Neil Nitin Mukesh and Bipasha Basu and Sanjay Gupta's multi-starrer 'Alibaug'.