Kareena attends workshops to shed glamour image

Kareena Kapoor is leaving nothing to chance this time. Determined to match strides with the formidable scene-stealer Kajol in the Hindi version of Stepmom, the actress has been quietly attending acting workshops with the film's director Siddharth Malhotra.

Kareena attends workshops to shed glamour image

"The last time I rehearsed for a part was for Vishal Bharadwaj's Omkara. But that was a more unconventional film and role where I had to get into a milieu and character I knew nothing about. But Stepmom is urban and very contemporary. I play a very normal metro-centric working girl," Kareena said.

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Malhotra's film is inspired by director Chris Columbus 1998 hit drama Stepmom, a heartwarming tale of two women - divorced Susan Sarandon and the new woman (Julia Roberts) in her ex-husband's life - and the problems they face to find a common ground of understanding.

And to attend the workshops, Kareena has been stealing time out of the rehearsals for a song she began shooting with Aamir Khan in 3 Idiots. Through the workshops Kareena is discovering how difficult it is to play a normal girl. "I walk, talk, dress like an ordinary working girl. I'll be using no makeup."

Bollywood's ace designer Manish Malhotra too is having a hard time trying to bring down Kareena's glamour quotient in Stepmom to look like an ordinary working woman. "I couldn't cut my hair as planned because of continuity clashes. And I didn't want to cut my long hair. But I'm going for a new hairstyle," said Kareena.

The two actresses start shooting together from the end of this month. Talking abour Kajol, Kareena said, "She's always been one of my favourite actresses. We worked together in Kabhi Khushi Kabhie Gham. But this is something else."

There will be a lot of dramatic scenes between the two women in the movie. "The desi version of Stepmom is very different from the original. My role is also a big departure from what Julia Roberts played in Stepmom," Kareena said.