Rakhi Sawant says No to Marriage

By Subhash K Jha

This Diwali Rakhi Sawant was with her boyfriend Abhishek's parents.

"They had come to visit. Yes, our parents do want us to get married. But we don't want to marry yet. Right now we want to build our careers. Shaadi kar ke kya kar lenge? Everyone gets married. Big deal!

And after marriage, love tends to die, specially in showbiz. With both of us working there's a danger that both me and Abhi will get less work after marriage.

We don't have the good fortune of Ajay Devgan and Kajol or Shah Rukh and Gauri. Let us both make something out of our lives. Then we'll shout out our marriage plans from rooftops. Abhi to main khadi bhi nahin hui hoon theek se."

This Diwali Rakhi had Shah Rukh for company. "I was busy whooping it up with Shah Rukh Khan on the sets of Nach Naliye. I was too ill that day to even get up from bed. But the minute Shah Rukh walked in I was up on my feet. This was my most memorable Diwali."

She seems to have forgiven her detractors on Nach Baliye. "Shall I tell you the truth? Now I don't care whether Abhishek and I win or lose. We got a platform and we got our fame.

Recently we met Hemaji and she said she watches us on Nach Baliye. She wanted to know if I was a trained dancer. There's a fire within me to dance. I don't have a godfather.

Nach Baliye gave me an opportunity to be noticed. People wait for my performances. Abhishek and I work really hard on every performance."

Rakhi has put all her other activities on the back-burner. "At the moment we don't have time to do anything except Nach Baliye. I did do an item song in Rakesh Roshan's Krazzy 4. But I won't lie to you. I'm not flooded with offers."

She says she's no longer bothered with the backbiting on Nach Baliye. "May God keep everyone happy with their behaviour. I've stopped paying attention to them.

I don't want my mood to be spoilt before every performance. Now I just focus on my performance. God is on my side. But I don't want to pressurize God for anything. He has already given me everything."

At the Saawariya premiere Rakhi met the mighty Dilip Kumar and Saira Banu. "He said to me, 'Bahut ladti ho teevee pe. Kyun itna ladti ho?' Abhishek and I touched his feet.

Our life was made. I also met Boney Kapoor and Sridevi. I nearly fainted when she congratulated me. Her daughters love me. They are such beautiful kids. They had come to me for a byte for their school project which I gave happily.

I'm a big fan of Sridevi, Madhuri and Rani. I also met Karan Johar and Manish Malhotra at the Saawariya premiere. By coincidence I was wearing a Manish Malhotra saree."

Rakhi has one burning ambition to fulfil. "I want to work with Sanjay Leela Bhansali. In his hands even the dirtiest artiste energes as a sparkling diamond. I've watched him shoot and I've seen how he works on his artistes.

Main bolun ….a hundred films by other directors ek taraf….Sanjay Leela Bhansali ki film ek taraf. I'm willing to do the smallest of parts in his cinema. Saawariya transports me into a different world."