Comparing me to Aishwarya Rai was unfair: Sneha Ullal

For a girl who began her career as an Aishwarya Rai lookalike, the road to Bollywood has not been easy to Sneha Ullal, but the actress is back in the Hindi film industry and wants to start on a new note.        

Sneha, who got a dream launch opposite Salman Khan in Lucky-No Time For Love in 2005, could not make much of a impression apart from her uncanny resemblance to the former Miss World.

The actress believes that constant comparisons to Bollywood superstar Aishwarya Rai in the very beginning of her career worked against her.

"Personally, it was one of the greatest compliments that I had. You don't often get compared to the most beautiful woman of your time. But you can't be fair if you expect a girl, who is starting out in the industry to be like someone who is already established. It worked against me. Give me five years and I can show what I can do," Sneha told PTI in an interview.

Lucky' did not prove lucky for Sneha at the box office despite the buzz surrounding the movie. The actress also starred in 2006 movie Aryan opposite Salman's filmmaker brother Sohail Khan and Kaashh... Mere Hote in 2008 but they failed to take off at the box-office, leaving Sneha with no option but to head towards southern film industry.

Sneha says she began acting at a wrong time and did not know much about Bollywood.  "I came into showbiz when I was really young. I did not know what films were all about. I did not know acting. I was very naive and did not know how things worked here," she says.

"It was not a right age to come into the industry. I as a happy little girl who did not know how to take decisions. I decided to take a break and groom myself.I am ready for Bollywood now," she adds.

Sneha was recently seen in horror flick 'Click' opposite Shreyas Talpade but the actress says it is not a comeback vehicle for her in Bollywood.

"It is not a comeback film for me. It is something which came along and something I could not miss. It is a great story and had a good part for me," Sneha says about the film, where she plays an abnormal girl.

"I have generally played this sweet, girl-next-door roles. But here I play a weird girl, her character is very tricky. She has nothing normal about her and that what attracts Shreyas to her. They have a relationship, the negative part of the romance provides the background for horror," says the 22-year-old actress about her character.

Sneha, who is a star down south thanks to Telugu films like 'Ullasamga Utsahamga', 'Nenu Meeku Telusa...?' and 'Current', hopes to make a proper comeback in Bollywood in two months time and has already signed two big projects. 

"I decided to return to Bollywood just two months back. I have signed Dard-E-Disco by Ashok Tyagi where Akshay Kapoor is my co-star. I am also doing another film, which will launch Joy Mukherjee's son Sujoy," says Sneha. And what about her career in South?

"I will never leave South because whatever I am today is because of the movies that I did there. The industry taught me acting and gave me confidence. I have got a name for myself there. I love the industry, people are really nice there," she says.

Salman has launched another girl Zarine Khan in his film Veer, who is again in the news for her similarity with Katrina Kaif but Sneha does not believe that the newcomer looks like Kaif.

"I don't think she looks like Katrina. She is very beautiful and is a great actress and like I said comparisons are unfair," she says. Looking back, Sneha believes the absence of a godfather in the industry and lack of experience made it difficult for her.

>"If I had a godfather or a family member in the industry I would not have found it so difficult. Things would have been easy. I have to start from the scratch but I have no regrets and am ready to work hard," Sneha says.