Smriti Irani I was going through a very bad phase when Kyunki... Saas Bhi Kabhi Bahu Thi... happened. I was just not getting any work. That's when I got a call from Balaji, asking me to meet up with them. At that time, all I knew about them was that they had made Hum Paanch. I had never been to a meeting before; I had only stood in queues for auditions. So I didn't have the faintest clue as to what happens in meetings. When I went there, Mrs (Shobha) Kapoor told me she had seen me in one of the episodes of the Bakeman Ooh La La show and I had done a fabulous job. All Ekta did was look at me from head to toe. Then she left the room. It was all over in a second. I left with a sinking heart. Later, I got another call from Balaji asking me to audition for Kyunki.... But when I reached there, my name was not in the audition list. After double checking, I was told only one name had been written against Tulsi Virani -- mine! Ekta was so sure only I would bring life to this mega character called Tulsi. Life is so unpredictable.
Then, when I was slated to do a character role in Ghar Ek Mandir, one of the Balaji crew tore my contract and and said, "No doing character roles. You are our Tulsi!" I was a rank newcomer and yet, on my birthday, a huge cake was cut for me. I was a total non-entity then, so much so that the security guards would not let me into the studios.
I still remember two weeks after I began shooting, a security guard would not let me in. I had to call up the production guys to rescue me!