"I am not completely married" Aarti Agarwal

Aarti Agarwal is one actress who has made more headlines for her personal life than her professional. Right from rumours of her relationship with actor Tarun and her alleged suicide attempt to her vanishing act from the movies, Aarti has been the subject of much speculation. But the 25-year-old actress who has “overcome the odds” and lost oodles of weight is all set for a comeback.

Neelaveni with Mukhul Dev will be her first film after her wedding with Ujwal, a techie in 2007. She has also signed another movie with Posani Krishna Murali. “I put on a lot of weight after an accident, which everyone made out to be a suicide attempt! So, I took a break to lose all those extra pounds. I also performed at a couple of shows in Doha to help me connect to my fans, though I wasn’t shooting,” she says.

Rumours are that Aarti who once only worked with the likes of Chiranjeevi, Nagarjuna, Venkatesh, Balakrishna, Mahesh Babu and NTR, is now lapping up any role that comes her way. “Working with top heroes is certainly a learning experience, but I can’t choose my co-stars. A good actor should be able to play any character well, I don’t mind being a heroine to any actor. I did Andala Ramudu opposite comedian Sunil and the movie was critically acclaimed,” she clarifies.While her professional life is looking up after a long time, there are rumours doing the rounds that she is back in tinsel town only because her marriage is on the rocks.

“This is not true, I’ve always been passionate about acting. Ujwal and I met each other on the Net. I was going through a bad phase in life at that time. We decided to get married immediately. Truth is we are yet to get to know each other. He wanted me to quit my film career, but I was not ready to do so. That’s when we decided to concentrate on our respective careers. In course of time, if we develop feelings for each other, we will stay together. Otherwise we will move on. For now, we are two good friends. I am not completely married”

The actress also rubbishes rumours that she was spotted at Tarun’s pub recently. “Tarun and I have not been in touch ever since my accident. I don’t even know where his pub is,” she says in her defence.The actress may be controversy’s favourite child, but she claims that she has become hardened enough to deal with anything now. “When I threw up once due to food poisoning, people reported that I’m pregnant. When I went out with my brother, a glossy referred to him as my new boyfriend! These reports used to affect me a lot before, but now I have stopped caring. I am too involved with my work and family now. I can handle situations better,” says Aarti who is 11-years-old in the industry now.

Aarti’s in fact, taking her love for family to a new level. Her dad Sashank Agarwal is all set to act in films with her. “My dad is my biggest support system. What I am today is all thanks to him. He will play my dad in one of my projects,” she says.Though there may be an influx of young actors sporting size zero figures and six packs in Tollywood, Aarti insists that she doesn’t feel threatened. “I think everyone has their own space in the industry. I may have been away for a while, but I haven’t changed much. I will still be doing glamorous roles. Filmmakers certainly know my strengths as an actress,” she signs off.