Sunjay Dutt's daughter has turned down Hollywood

But just like her father, underneath the tough, hard shell is something gooey soft. Her uncanny maturity and professional outlook was only a couple of things that caught peoples eye. After holding back long enough, she finally answers about her future plans, and if films were waiting for her just around the corner. "Yes there are [acting plans] but not in Bollywood. I'm doing much better off in Hollywood, as I've got a few offers but had to turn them down due to my age and schoolwork. It was very upsetting." Impressively, some of the films she's already turned down include Saw III (October 27), Marie Antoinette (October 20), and Casino Royale (November 16). She's also signed a contract with the popular specialty-clothing store Abercrombie & Fitch. Upsetting it must have been in deed, but her patience is undeniable.

"Everything happens for a reason," she tells me calmly. "I had to make a choice: Either sacrifice my entire life and pray the film does well. Or, I finish school and get a degree in something solid, so just in case, I have something to fall back on. I chose college over those films releasing now that I could have been in." And once again with that envious dose of patience she says, "I'm still young. There will be others."

What makes a person wise? Is it the money they have, contacts they know, or the ability to see from a composed, all-encompassing perspective? For Trishala it's the latter. Such an understanding of purpose and place is rarely realized by many star-children who have blindly jumped into the center-stage of glitz and glamour.

Many who have followed Sanjay Dutt's career know that his journey has been nothing but smooth sailing. From the untimely death of his first wife, Richa Sharma, to the child custody battle with his in-laws, to his alleged involvement in the 1993 Mumbai bombings; he has still emerged victorious as an actor, a human being, and a father. "I have a very strong relationship with him," she says. "Most people think he and I aren't very close but they're wrong. Just because I don't see him everyday doesn't mean him and me aren't close. I talk to him, I'd say, every three days?"

Asked Trishala whether or not her dad had ever expressed interest towards her entering Bollywood ' a very current issue, as the recent past has seen an emergence of the star-children generation. "For Bollywood it's completely different now. He used to express interest, but now its just stay out of it." Further justifying his stance, "Girls are used mainly as props for films, which he does not want me getting into." Once again one finds little basis to argue. Obviously there are exceptions to the rule (i.e. Kalpana Lajmi's films).

In response to Bollywood's foil, Hollywood: "In Hollywood you can pick and choose what you want and don't want to do.