MUMBAI — Former adult film actress Sunny Leone, who retired from the industry in 2013 to pursue a more mainstream career, is starring as twins Laila and Lily in the upcoming Bollywood sex comedy "Mastizaade."
The Indo-Canadian actress was Penthouse Pet of the Year in 2003 and named by Maxim as one of the 12 top porn stars in 2010. She first made a mainstream appearance on the red carpet as a reporter for the MTV Video Music Awards on MTV India in 2005 and gained a wider audience after participating in the Indian reality TV series "Big Boss." Gamma Entertainment still operates her adult website www.SunnyLeone.com.
"This is the first time that I am playing twins — one is nerdy, while the other is sexy," Leone said. "I found that to be a great idea as India sees me more as Laila, but I’m actually nerdy — like Lily is — in real life. Maybe that’s why Lily is closer to my heart because I got to act out a character who’s closer to my personality. It is challenging playing two roles in a film but I enjoyed it very much. I believe that is because of Milap (Zaveri) and Rangita (Nandy) my producer. They made shooting so much fun that I didn’t see it as a pain to be two characters in one day."
“Every single day was funny and the entire cast would always be together all day and for our dinners," added Leone. "It was such a nice experience to get to know everyone like this!”
The film is directed by Milap Zaveri and produced by Pritish Nandy of Pritish Nandy Communications (PNC).
“I love Laila’s sex appeal and oomph and Lily’s cuteness and madness," Zaveri said. "Laila is a bomb while Lily is a phuljhadi. If you ask me who’s my favorite, I can’t choose, because I love both!"
“Lily Lele is my personal favorite!" Nandy said. "She’s part of Team Dork as she’s geeky, naughty, cheeky and accidentally sexy! Sunny jumped at playing Laila and Lily Lele, but I know what really got her to say yes was the chance to play dorky Lily. Sunny can sleepwalk through Laila, but not many know this, Lily is actually who Sunny Leone is. She said yes because, for the first time, she was getting to play her true self on screen.”
