On a new track

Launchpad: MTV Splitsvilla 3 Big Leap: Now seen as Geet on Star Plus’s Love u Zindagi,which went on air in January 2011

The 24-year-old was working as cabin crew on Kingfisher Airlines when she auditioned for MTV Splitsvilla 3. There,Pavitra Punia’s sexy,dirty,bitchy act with rampant use of profanities brought her into the limelight. Her return to the small screen is rather ironic as Punia now plays the sweet and bubbly,Geet on Love U Zindagi,the prequel to Imtiaz Ali’s blockbuster film Jab We Met. From bikinis on the beach to phulkari dupattas and patiala salwars,Punia’s transition is complete. The actress has undergone an image-makeover but maintains that her bitchiness on the reality show has worked in her favour. “I was chosen from 750 girls who had auditioned for the role and though a lot of people still remember me as the Splitsvilla girl,Love U Zindagi will change that.” Breaking News: “I was studying to become an IPS officer but had to leave that behind now that the TV bug has bitten me,” says Punia.

Ayaz Ahmed

Launchpad: MTV Roadies 5Big Leap: Has returned as Ayaan in UTV Bindass’s Meri Toh Lag Gai… Naukri,which went on air this month.

Ayaz Ahmed’s decision to audition for MTV Roadies 5 followed a chance meeting he had with Raghu Ram,the show’s producer,at a radio station in Kolkata. Though he didn’t last long on the show,he did attract attention and bagged a few blink-and-you-miss-them roles in two shows,Kitani Mohabbat Hai on Imagine and Tujh Sang Preet Lagai Sajna on Star Plus. Finally,he bagged a key role in Meri Toh…where he plays a spoilt South Mumbai brat. “My character would rather hang out with friends,but is forced to intern in an office. So he tries everything possible to get fired,” says Ahmed. Talking about his ‘struggle’,he adds,“This industry doesn’t embrace people from reality genre since it is believed that shows like Roadies do not require talent. But I am sure the channel noticed something to offer me a show like this.” Even though Ahmed is glad about the show,he dreams big and is waiting for his ‘Friday’ when he will deliver a commercial hit film.

Breaking News: Ahmed is a martial arts expert and is fond of cooking and painting.

Shambhavi Sharma

Launchpad: MTV Roadies 5Big Leap: Plays Ginny on Sony’s Chajje Chajje Ka Pyaar,which went on air in February 2011

Every season of MTV Roadies has a reigning eye-candy and the fifth season,which aired in 2008,belonged to Shambhavi Sharma. Most male contestants had a soft corner for her and she leveraged that fact to remain in the game till the end. Three years later,this 21-year-old is back on TV as the chirpy Ginny on Chajje Chajje Ka Pyaar who falls for her childhood friend. “Youngsters loved me when I was in Roadies and older people hated me for being manipulative. But I suppose it’s the other way round now,” smiles Sharma. After her stint on the reality show,the Delhi girl went back to college till a call from Mumbai made her shift base to the city. She explains her luck,“If you have the looks,talent and the right platform,like a reality show,then you are bound to get good work.”

Breaking News: Sharma is all set to be seen on the big screen in Joy Augustine’s film The Little Godfather.

Vandana Joshi

Launchpad: Dance India Dance 2 Big Leap: Is now seen as Nandini on Zee’s Dil Se Diya Vachan,which went on air in December 2010

It isn’t very often that newbies gain a prime-time slot without much struggle. But Vandana Joshi pirouetted her way from Dance India Dance 2 to Dil Se Diya Vachan in no time. “I am an opportunist,” is how Joshi explains her switch from dance to drama. Nandini,the character she plays,is a rape victim who shares a great relationship with her mother-in-law,played by Nina Gupta. “People think that reality shows are an easy medium to enter television,but I was a part of DID because of my passion for dancing. I still get together with my friends once a week to practise,” she says. Even though she is part of a cliché’ family drama,her dream is to be directed on TV by Anurag Basu as he “challenges his actors”.

Breaking News: “My father was against my participation in DID,but when he watched me dance on the show,he understood my passion. His outlook changed further when Mithunda (Mithun Chakraborty) spoke to him,” she says.

Shakti Mohan

Launchpad: Dance India Dance 2 Big Leap: Will be seen as Kria on Channel V’s Dil,Dosti,Dance,starting April 11

She had not even won Dance India Dance when Shakti Mohan’s fans put up her dancing videos on youtube.com and created a fan page on Facebook. The limelight helped her bag a number of live shows but she disappeared from television. That was until Channel V approached her for a dance-based fiction show. The 25-year-old will play Kria,a girl from Dehradun,whose passion for dancing brings her to the city of dreams,Mumbai. “I received plenty of offers for saas-bahu shows even while I was on DID,but I was not interested. I agreed to do Dil,Dosti,Dance only because the story revolves around dancing,” says Mohan,who has a post-graduate degree in Political Science. While the reality show made her an overnight celebrity,she feels that fiction,despite the fame it brings,requires immense hard work. And like most others,Mohan too hopes that her next leap will be to cinema,“but without letting dancing take a back seat”.

Breaking News: Mohan met with a terrible accident when she was five years old and was paralysed for the next seven months. Twenty years since,she is an acclaimed dancer with appreciation from Shiamak Davar and Terence Lewis.