It has been a makeover for me'Mona Singh

Mona Singh speaks of her 'Jhalak..' experience

Mona Singh had all slamming her after the first episode in 'Jhalak Dikhhla Jaa' (Sony) especially on her being overweight. It is credible that she took every criticism in the right spirit and worked hard to loose weight and also achieve what she set out to do – "to dance". Eight kilos lighter at the end of eight weeks and a finalist to boot, Mona speaks to us in the midst of her promotional campaigns in Delhi and Chandigarh.

"I have had a blast. Today, I know that I am not just a mere actor but a dancer as well. I put in my best in understanding the techniques from the basics to different Latin American dance forms," enthuses Mona.

On what made her join it, she says, "It is a show for beginners who want to learn to dance. Besides, people did not expect me to be a part of a reality show. I wanted to attempt something different, away from the usual routine."

"Its been three months since 'Jassi..' went off the air and this was the perfect show for me to regain my identity, away from Jassi. Now, people know me as Mona and that is a huge achievement. I am proud of being Jassi but 'Jhalak..'
essentially has been a major makeover for me. I have emerged as hot, sexy, namkeen from the earlier tag of cute and innocent," smiles Mona.

What does winning mean to her? "It would mean victory as I never ever thought I would be able to dance. It's a huge achievement. It will open up other areas of work for me. It might open doors to Bollywood and this year should be a start to new beginnings."

And what if she lost? "I never thought I would reach so far in this contest so I would return to my normal life. Just being a finalist with Shveta who is such a good dancer is great."

"I have learnt from Tobby that only hard work will take one far and there are no shortcuts to success. He knows how much to push me and is a great choreographer. We are very alike, laugh and enjoy the same things," says Mona on Tobby.

Mona will be seen in 'Extreme Makeover' (Sony) and is a RJ for a radio station. "I will never quit TV as this is where I have achieved success as an actor. But I do wish to be part of challenging film scripts and would ideally like to combine TV and films," says Mona.