Vida Samadzai Interview

And that, in a nutshell, is Vida Samadzai. While she's comfortable walking the ramp, a natural in front of the camera, and a rising star on the big screen ("Truthfully," she says, "My heart is in acting over modelling."), Vida's passion is charity, or as she puts it, 'making the world a better place'.

Because for Vida, the entertainment world is inseparable from the 'real world', all thanks to an infamous red bikini. The year was 2003, and Vida, competing as Miss Afghanistan in the Miss Earth contest, shattered barriers as the first Afghan woman to compete in an international beauty pageant in three decades. Her decision to don a bikini for the swimsuit portion of the contest set off a firestorm of controversy in her country of birth, still heavily influenced by the ideology of the repressive Taliban regime.

"I guess that beauty pageant helped shaped me," she says. "Because now I want to be 'the first' to do many things. I want to cross boundaries and milestones. I want to be the best, to do my best, to help change the world. I'm definitely not afraid of controversy anymore," she says, smiling.

But how did a girl, born and raised in Kabul, Afghanistan and moved to California at 14, wind up in Mumbai, where's she been for the past couple of years? "The culture," she says. "I love the culture of Mumbai, and India. I guess it started with Bollywood movies when I was kid, which were very popular in Afghanistan. Compared to the United States, India is so fascinating and vibrant! I was tired of all the straight lines and being told where to park in America,' she explains with a laugh.

Having modelled in the US and in India, Vida is able to speak authoritatively about differences between the two. "I've walked in Florida, LA, and New York, and compared to those places, fashion in India is definitely a little different. The importance of punctuality, the sense of professionalism, it's not the same. But Lakme and Wills always manage to ensure the envents are well-organized."

When she first arrived in India, as a model she worked 16 hours days, from 5 am till late into the night. But nowadays, with her increased name recognition, she's more commonly used as a showstopper. "Being a showstopper is great," she says. "You work for a few hours, are paid like triple the amout, and get a new outfit!"

But has the financial crisis affected her? "In general, it's had an effect on the fashion industry. But I think India's been able to avoid the worst of it. In my case, I'm still getting plenty of work: runway offers, commercial modeling offers, and more script-readings than ever."

While working on the film Black and White, director Subhash Ghai told Vida that she should never give up acting, she says, and his encouragement helped convince her to stick with Bollywood. She'll soon feature in a song in the upcoming release Acid Factory, and has several other projects lined up as well.

So she's succeeding on the professional front, clearly. But how about her love life? "Sucks," she says, with an expression of exaggerated gloom. "I feel like Indian guys and myself are just not on the same page. I'm not saying I'm better, or they're better; it's just that they seem to have different expectations, whether it's getting married right away or something else. In India, you don't just get involved with a person, you get involved with his best friend, his parents, his brother, his sister, and so on."

But, Indian or not, do mere mortals have a chance of dating her, the non actors and non models? "Of course!" she proclaims. "I generally refuse to date models and actors. I prefer the corporate guy with a stylish suit and tie. Intelligent and well-mannered are important too. Oh, and frangrance is a must! You have to smell good."

Despite her love for India (and her cute little apartment in Juhu Beach, Mumbai), Vida often fantasizes about her home in Californai. "You're looking at a girl who's desperately home sick," she says. "I'm so passionate about my work in Mumbai, but I also really, really miss my family. It's a tough situation. But I think it would be too easy to just go home to the States, to the easy life. There's still a lot I want to achieve here first."

More from Vida Samadzai

On her personal fashion sense:

"White shirts and jeans. And the shoes and purse absolutely must match! As for jewellery, keep it simple, at least for now. Studs and rings and a nice, stylish watch. It doesn't have to be too expensive. And make-up, just lip gloss and mascara."

On her schedule:
"I'm too busy to party. I take Hindi lessons, I take dance lessons, I do yoga, I exercise, and I work. That's about it these days!"

On multiple fashion weeks:
"In my opinion, there should be one big fashion week, a full week, organized by one body. Right now, it's too confusing for everyone, especially the buyers. Using myself as an example, the two shows that just happened in Delhi, I couldn't be both places at once. I had a flight to catch!

On what she wants in life:
"I want to do NGOs forever, for the rest of my lfie. I want to act for a long time too, providing my future husband is understanding. And I don't mind modelling, either. It pays well. Finally, and of course, maybe five or seven years down the line, I'd like to have a family.

On her life philosophy:
"Be optimistic and treat every individual with the respect you would like to receive. Because of the beauty pageant controversy, some women in the world consider me an inspiration. That's an honour to me and I treasure that responsibility. So I would never want to serve as a bad example for anyone."