SRK's cheerleaders head to South Africa

pa_nat69 · #1 Apr-15-09, 12:03 AM

SRK's cheerleaders head to South Africa

Shah Rukh Khan selected his six angels to cheer for his Kolkata Knight Rider’s team during the IPL. These girls will be flying to South Africa to prepare for the matches today. We caught up with a few of the cheerleaders and found out about their prep work and plans.

Sunanda tells us what she knows about what’s planned for the trip so far, saying, “First, we will go to Cape Town and meet the Set Max people. We are going to be performing at the opening ceremony, which will take place on Friday and Saturday. We’ll get the rest of the schedule when we land there.”

Talking about the surreal experience of being a cheerleader for her favourite team, she says, “I am really excited about watching the live matches for the first time in my life. I am from Kolkata and the Knight Riders were my favourite team last year. The whole of Kolkata loves Sourav (Ganguly). He is my favourite player. I also like Irfan Pathan.” And apart from work, she has other plans too. She adds, “I want to go on Safari.”

Sunanda hopes that her stint as a cheerleader paves the way to a successful career in entertainment. She says, “The show gave us a good platform; we got good exposure, interacted with the media and got to meet people whom we previously only saw on TV. I first came to Mumbai to get into acting. I have done print commercials for Jhalak Dikhhla Jaa and the Country Club. After the IPL concludes, I want to move on to acting. We are supposed to sign a one-year contract with the production house once we land in South Africa, but I do not know for what amount.”

Rupali, another cheerleader, is equally excited. She says, “I am thrilled to go. I like my team a lot and Sourav is my favourite cricketer. I am a huge fan of the game and I am really looking forward to it. I just finished my 11th commerce exams from Sydenham College. My results will be out by the time I fly back to Mumbai. But I want to finish my studies before getting into acting. After this season gets over, I will prepare for my 12th.”

Participating in Knight And Angels was Rupali’s first attempt at breaking into the glamour world. She says, “I like this cheering thing. Acting wise, if something good comes my way then I am ready to go ahead. Knights And Angels was a good experience for me; I have learnt a lot and made many friends here. And I am super excited because SRK is going be with us throughout the season.”

Sanna informs us that though she’s packed and ready to go, the team hasn’t practiced any routines as yet. She says, “I am ready to fly but we haven’t had any rehearsals for our performance. I didn’t follow the last IPL but I do have a favourite cricketer- M. S. Dhoni.”

Talking about the hard work she put in during the competition, Sanna says, “We really worked hard during the show. We would get up at 5 in the morning for rehearsals! But everything has paid off. It is going to be very hectic for us there but still, I am really looking forward to shopping and the outings.”

Like the other girls, Sanna too has acting aspirations. She says, “I have done an acting course with Anupam Kher’s acting school. It was a three-month course. I have modeled for many websites and have even been awarded the best face of the month in Nagpur. I was Ms. Maharashtra too. After being on Knights And Angels, people have actually approached me for work. I have offers for a few shows but, since I am going to South Africa, I have not given any auditions.”

After a 13-week competition, Shah Rukh Khan and Sourav Ganguly selected six girls as the official cheerleaders for the Kolkata Knight Riders, to cheer them on at this year’s IPL.

Sonali Joshi/Hill Road Media
Tuesday, April 14, 2009

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