Interview with Miss International India 2011 (Neha Hinge)

Neha Hinge

She was awarded the Bollywood Diva title at the Miss India pageant 2010, apart from being adjudged the Pantaloons Femina Miss Fresh Face, Miss Professional and Online winner. Neha Hinge, Miss India International 2010 is a spirited woman with immense confidence, positive energy and the ability to take life as it comes.

In an exclusive chat with us, Neha tells us why she has taken things slow after her Bollywood debut in Joe Rajan's Luv U Soniyo, what it means to be desirable and how travelling makes her the happiest.



From a software engineer to a model and a Miss India, how has the transition been?
To tell you the truth, my family is full of IIT geniuses, doctors and engineers. As if almost like a tradition, my career too had to follow the same route into the corporate world. I did my BE in Electronics and became a software engineer thereafter. My childhood dreams were however different from what became of me as an adult. As a 5-year-old, seeing Aishwarya Rai winning the Miss World title was like living a dream. Miss India for me meant nothing more than blowing kisses, doing lot of charity and landing up a movie offer. I realised that Miss India is a responsibility and not about blowing kisses in the wind when I myself adorned the crown in 2010. It was during my growing up years that I joined grooming classes. Instructors and trainers would often tell me I had the 'Miss India face' but I was stiff and raw, thanks to my formal bearing as an engineer. Slowly, muscles loosened up, I started looking into the camera as opposed to keeping my eyes closed with fear before, and then, after years of training, I walked my way through to the Miss India stage and won too!

Then how did you convince your parents for a career in modelling?
My parents were calm, supportive and motivating. In fact, it was my mother who decided on a professional training for me once I made my mind to be a model. Whenever I fumbled and my nerves got the better of me, my parents lifted me up from all dilemmas and apprehensions. I remember how unsure I was about my first film because Bollywood had never been my plan. My father had full faith in me and it is because of him that I discovered I can be an actor too.

An oft-repeated question though, how has life changed after Miss India?
Miss India has been a watershed moment in my life. From being a girl with a tight ponytail, sitting in front of the computer and figuring out things in keyboard clicks, I was suddenly this woman people began looking up to. Now, when I pose for the cameras, I feel the one thing that has not changed in all these years is the sound of the 'click'. It was the computer then, it's the camera now. I come from a small town called Dewas near Indore, a place you can hardly locate on the map. After Miss India, it is indeed a proud realisation that my home is no more non-existent to people.

You were among the Top 50 Most Desirable Women of 2010 according to the Times of India Poll. What does it mean to be desirable?
Being desirable does not mean just beautiful. Desirable is someone who is liked, adored and loved by people from all age groups, age, class and such like. You can be desirable only when you make people happy irrespective of their backgrounds and other concerns.

We last saw you in Luv U Soniyo. What next?
I do not rush into things and therefore I am giving myself time to find the right film. I am going through a couple of scripts at the moment. After Luv U Soniyo, I do not want to settle for anything below my standard. I have endorsed brands like Nokia, Sunsilk, Pantaloons and Street Wear among others.

A life-changing experience you would like to share...
That has to be Miss India. I can't help but recall the moment when I was given the keys of a brand new car as the winner's gift after being declared Miss India International 2010. I'd always wanted to buy a fancy car but could not and to see it coming my way as a present felt special. I was thrilled beyond words.

Movie(s) in the recent times you wish you could be a part of...
I wish I could play Priyanka Chopra's character in Barfi. Much as I loved the film, I was simply bowled over by the ex-Miss World's performance.

Your favourite directors and actors
I have grown up watching Yash Raj Production films. I wanted to be signed for at least one movie under that prestigious banner, but after the stalwart director Yash Chopra's demise, I feel the wish will remain a dream. Farhan Akhtar (as an actor too), Imtiaz Ali, Anurag Basu and Anurag Kashyap are other directors I would love to work with. Salman Khan, Abhay Deol, Hrithik Roshan are heroes I would like to be paired alongside.

What is that one thing which makes you truly happy?
Travelling and vacations make me super happy. I have been to seven countries till now and Thailand is going to be my next destination in January.