Esha on a C(r)ash course!

GOOD HEAVENS: Esha Deol in Cash

Esha Deol nearly crashed into a police car while shooting for Cash in Cape Town (South Africa).

The actress was shooting for a car chase sequence where she was supposed to put the car in reverse gear and back out. Instead, she accidentally put the Volkswagen Beetle into first gear and stepped hard on the accelerator.

Mercifully, she realised her mistake and braked in time, stopping inches away from a police car that was in front of her.

The director screamed 'cut' as a shaken Esha brought the car to a halt. But minutes later, she repeated the near-collision act. According to a unitwalla, the misjudgment occurred because Esha was driving a Volkswagen.

Twice bitten

Says the source, "The reverse gear of a Beetle is similar to the first gear of an Indian car, and that's why Esha committed the error.

But it was surprising that she pressed so hard on the accelerator. She was supposed to reverse the car slowly and then zip forward.

We were also puzzled as to how she could make the same mistake twice in a matter of minutes."

The producer, Sohail Maklai, defends his leading lady, saying, "These things happen if you drive a car that you are not used to.

Esha realised her mistake in the nick of time, and thankfully there was no damage or injury. All's well that ends well."

Stuntman Zayed

Co-star Zayed Khan was also in the car with Esha, when the near-accident happened. In the scene, Zayed was hanging on to the door on the opposite side, with Esha at the wheel. Both of them are surrounded by cops and are trying to get away in the scene.

When contacted, Esha admits, "I did err the first time, but the second time, I deliberately drove the car forward really fast. That's because I wanted Zayed to fall off the car. Of course, Zayed didn't fall off.

He is really good at stunts." However, Esha is adamant that there was no question of her slamming into the police car in front of her. Instead, she was only trying to play a prank on Zayed.

"I admit I applied the brakes very close to the police car, but that was deliberate. I am an expert driver. I've been driving cars since I was 13. I increased the speed, so the brakes were going to come as a big jolt.

I wanted to succeed in making Zayed fall off. But alas," laughs Esha, who has recently signed Vikram Bhatt's next film opposite Dino Morea.

Maklai adds that he was very impressed with Esha's antics at the wheel.
"Esha has performed quite a lot of stunts in Cash. She even did a 360-degree car turn without a hitch.

She learnt the stunts under the guidance of Anthony Stone, who also taught underwater stunts to Dia Mirza in the film. She practised on the race track for three hours every day," informs Maklai.

oo i m happy she didnt get injured.