Danger zone specialist is out

Mumbai: Puja Banerjee was finally eliminated this week from Jhalak Dikhhla Jaa and she admits that being out of the dance show feels odd. “I’m blank right now. I was so used to just getting up every morning, leaving the house and spending half the day at the Jhalak house and the other half at rehearsals. Now all of a sudden I have nothing to do with my time and I’m feeling very low,” says Puja.

As much as she misses the routine and the people associated with the show, Puja said she would miss the Jhalak stage even more. “I have performed on stage before but the Jhalak stage offered a very different experience altogether,” she says adding “I miss my fellow contestants Mouni Roy, Sreesanth, Ashish Sharma, Karan Tacker. We had all grown very close to each other. I was quite close to Sukhiji (Sukhwinder) too.”

Puja was teased about just how often she found herself in the danger zone, but she says it never made her upset. “Danger zone mujhse juda tha, (the danger zone was attached to me) but I took it in a sporting way,” she said, laughing. “It never affected me or my performance in any way. In fact, I like such situations, because I love to face new challenges.”

Puja feels the competition is especially tough this year, with all the participants building on their performances with every passing week. “Malishka (Mendonca) for instance, is a complete non-dancer, but everyone is amazed with her energy level and dancing abilities. If I have to predict who will make it to the finale, I’d have to say Shakti Mohan, Akshat Singh, Mouni Roy and Ashish Sharma. But then, you never really know. Luck also plays a crucial part.”

The actress also tells us that she does not plan to return to the small screen any time soon. “I want to focus on Bollywood for now,” she explained. “There are a few offers that I will now look at since I’m free.”