I don't want to reinvent myself: Sunny Leone on her past, settling in Mumbai and 'Mastizaade'

Sunny Leone’s rise from the adult entertainment industry to Bollywood has been unique and phenomenal. When Pooja Bhatt introduced Leone in Jism 2, moralists and purists laughed. But Leone, with her supportive husband, pushed on, creating a tantalizing niche for herself in Hindi cinema.

Though she is far from attaining acceptance from Bollywood’s A-list actors and filmmakers, Leone is perfectly happy with getting the kind of attention she had only dreamed about during her stint as the queen of adult content. Here are excerpts from an interview with the down to earth diva:

A lot has been happened to your career in Bollywood . How do you feel about the changes in your life and career? This has been the most amazing transition that I could hope for. Being accepted and liked in another country is not something that happens all the time.

How accepting has Bollywood been of you? Do you feel completely at home here? Bollywood has been very accepting. I know there are people out there that don’t like me but there are more people liking me so it doesn’t bother me. I am very lucky that when I entered Bollywood I was coming with a fan-following already. And Big Boss Season 5 show helped everyone else get to know me as a person. Moving to India from Hollywood was one of the easiest moves I have ever made. Effortless, really. When I was a child I wanted to play football, hockey, basketball and so on, so this is a challenge for me to learn a whole new art.

How much of the Indian film industry have you so far come to terms with? I am not sure I fully understand this question. But I grew up in a typical Punjabi home and watched Hindi movies during my childhood. I understand Hindi and Punjabi and the Indian film industry is like every entertainment industry across the world. It all functions the same just in a different language. I have moved my whole world here and love this industry of Bollywood.

Do you feel it’s hard for an outsider like you to crack the Bollywood code? I can’t speak for someone else’s experiences in life, but my background and the fact that I have been in entertainment for 13 years, did give me the basic understandings of how things work. I work very hard around the clock, trying my hardest to learn everything that Bollywood is. I’m not even sure if I have fully cracked the “code” but I have begun the process hopefully. It all depends on how my second, third and forth movie do. In all reality I have only made one movie that has been released to the world. It all depends on how the world accepts me in those movies to come.

Are you now a full-on Mumbai girl?  I feel very comfortable living here and it’s been the easiest move for my husband and I. We are very much settled and know the ins and out of Mumbai. I think the day I felt totally comfortable was when I started giving my driver directions.

How does your family react to your new career as a Bollywood actress? My husband obviously is my biggest supporter. He runs two other businesses and has his own musical band and yet still finds the time to be my husband and manage my career, he’s kind of like superman. My brother is very very supportive and has been from the beginning of my career. If my mom and dad knew I met Madhuri Dixit, I know they would have been so excited. My father always told me over and over again, do what you want in life but make sure you are the best at what you do and work hard. My father left India to Canada with $200 USD in his pocket and worked his way up and I always admired his hard work.

Have you bought your own home in Mumbai? Was it difficult for you to get property in Mumbai? I have not purchased a home yet because my husband and I decided to see how things would move forward here in Bollywood before committing to buying something. It has also giving us a chance to get to know our surrounding and neighborhood that are nice to live in. It was a very easy process to find something we like and all tenants were very excited at the thought of a Bollywood actress living in their place. We are currently looking at new builds that fits in our time frame to buy. It’s very exciting.

Have you left your days as an adult star behind? How do you look back on that experience? Right now my whole focus is in Bollywood and nothing else. I believe I have been given the opportunity of a lifetime and I plan to keep my focus and energy here till the fans want me. If it wasn’t for my past I would not be who I am. I am not ashamed of it because it has brought me here to India. If I came here as regular me with no entertainment experience then I would not be as popular as I am today with the public.

Is it true your husband Daniel is also seeking a career in Bollywood? My husband is entertaining several opportunities and for information you’ll have to ask him.

Women and children in India have lately been subjected to unprecedented violence and brutality. How do you react to the perception that the commodification of women in the glamour industry is a major cause for provoking crime against women? Well, what has been going on is not something that just started recently, but the media has been bringing light to these horrible, psychotic events. It’s not an industry that makes people do things, it’s an individual and that individual needs help. These things happen all over the world at every minute of the day. The entertainment industry can not be blamed.

Do you still feel like an outsider in Bollywood? Yes, I do feel like an outsider in the film fraternity. But I feel I’ve been accepted by my fans.

How much acceptance have you experienced within the Mumbai film industry? Enough. So much so that I have been busy everyday this last year.

This is the era of the female hero in Bollywood. What do you feel about the trend of woman carrying films on their shoulders? I think it’s great the woman can carry a movie on their own. It should be like this.

How do you look back on your career in Bollywood so far? Insanity! I love it; I have grown so much and learned so much. It’s a world I never thought I would be a part of.

You’ve spoken to me earlier of the restricted acceptance you’ve found in Bollywood. Do you still feel ostracized and isolated? Well, I think those words are a little strong but I know I don’t exactly fit in. But I’m okay with that. I want to work and do good work that’s it. If I make friends along the way then that’s awesome and if not then I’m fine with that too. I have acceptance from my fans and they are the ones that keep me going.

A-list heroes are told by their wives not to work with you. How do you react to that? I don’t care. I should be the least of their worries. I respect marriage and love more then they know. One day when they meet me they will see that.

Your film Mastizaade has been passed by the censor board. Your thoughts on this film? I am so excited for this film. We all had worked so hard while shooting and it’s finally approved. I know my producer and director had a trying time getting it passed but with the grace of God it has. I believe people are going to love this film and will be laughing so much.

Mastizaade again takes you into the adult zone. Don’t you pine to get away from that area and do something that would be acceptable to family audiences? This is a comedy and I strive to make movies that I love. This film reminds me of the movies in the US and no one looks down on Hollywood a-listers for this and I don’t think Bollywood should either. It’s entertainment and it’s fun. I signed this movie right after Ragini MMS 2 so it’s been something in the works a long time. Some of my movies that are releasing this year are in the more serious zone. You’ll just have to wait and watch.

How will ‘Sunny Leone’ reinvent herself during the coming months? I actually dislike the word reinvent. I never want to reinvent me, I love who I am. But what does happen very organically is I grow and evolve as human being, actress and professional. So over the months, yes things will change but it’s not something that is planned.