After punching and pummelling her way through the Mouna Guru remake, the actress is now combining forces with John Abraham.

When A R Murugadoss decided to remake Santha Kumar's 2011 Tamil action thriller,Mouna Guru, asAkira, with the leading lady of his filmHoliday, Sonakshi Sinha, stepping into actor Arulnithi Tamilarasu's shoes, little did he know that he was moulding an action heroine for Hindi cinema.

The 28-year-old actress underwent months of training in mixed martial arts to enhance strength and flexibility. She also practised choreographed kicking and punching. "By switching the gender, Murugadoss sir has changed the film's perspective and makes the character even more relatable. Every young girl will be able to take something away from it. For me,Akirawas exciting because I was getting to learn something new. The prep required plenty of discipline and hard work but I was happy to go through the grind because it helped me get into shape too," Sonakshi smiles.

She recalls a cable action scene in the film in which she had to kick off from the chest of one of the fighters, do a back flip in the air and land on her feet. "It was the most daunting and difficult stunt I've ever done but I pulled it off," she exults. Sonakshi has now bagged theForcesequel opposite John Abraham which will also have lots of daredevil stunts but will not require any further homework. "The training I've undergone is perfect forForce 2too though this time, the action will be more stylised as compared to the raw power ofAkira," she points out.

John is still remembered for his bulging biceps and 12-pack from the originalForce. Apprehensive? The query is answered with peals of laughter, "What's a 12-pack? Last I counted, it was six! And why would I be apprehensive? That was John's look for the film and I'm not exactly competing with his physique. I've worked with some of the best action heroes and learnt from watching them. It will be amazing to put all that learning to use and see it translate on screen."

The way she's going, will she soon give Bollywood's heroes a complex? "Why would I give them a complex? They've been at it for years; it will take me a while to be in their league, but I will keep trying," she promises. Prod her on role models and Angelina Jolie is the obvious choice for her effortless action in films likeSalt,Wanted,Mr. & Mrs. SmithandLara Croft Tomb Raider: The Cradle of Life."I also loved Uma Thurman in theKill Billseries and Rani Mukerji was awesome inMardaani," she raves.

Given her new-found expertise in maar-dhaad, will Rajjo fight the baddies inDabangg 3with Chulbul Pandeyji? Sonakshi instantly clams up, saying it's too early to speak aboutDabangg 3which is still being scripted. "But I think they will leave the fighting to Pandeyji in this one as well," she smiles coyly.

Okay, so Salman's out, so which action hero would she like to match, kick for kick, someday? "Definitely Akshay Kumar," she quips. "He is so good in martial arts and parkour that it would be challenging to match him, kick for kick!" Well, there's talk of aRowdy Rathoresequel, she could give Akshay competition in that? "Why are you hell-bent on me giving my heroes competition?" she frowns. "We all work in harmony for the film. I don't know anything about aRowdy Rathoresequel but if it happens, it would be awesome."

When Sonakshi is not fighting, she's dancing.Nachan farrate, her special appearance song inAll Is Well, is already top of the charts."Ahmed Khan choreographed the song and he's really fast.We knocked this song off in two-and-a-half days and the energy level on the set was always high," she reminisces.