While shooting for Cash in Cape Town Esha Deol nearly crashed into a police car.

She was supposed to put the car in reverse gear and back out for a car chase sequence. Instead, she accidentally put the Volkswagen Beetle into first gear and stepped hard on the accelerator.

Mercifully, she realised her mistake and put the brakes on time, stopping inches away from a police car that was in front of her

The director screamed ‘cut' as a shaken Esha brought the car to a halt. But minutes later, she repeated the near-collision act.

According to a guy from the unit, the misjudgment occurred because Esha was driving a Volkswagen.

the source says, "The reverse gear of a Beetle is similar to the first gear of an Indian car, and that's why Esha committed the error. But it was surprising that she pressed so hard on the accelerator.

She was supposed to reverse the car slowly and then zip forward. We were also puzzled as to how she could make the same mistake twice in a matter of minutes."

The producer, Sohail Maklai, defends his leading lady, saying, "These things happen if you drive a car that you are not used to. Esha realised her mistake in the nick of time, and thankfully there was no damage or injury. All's well that ends well."

When contacted, Esha admits, "I did err the first time, but the second time, I deliberately drove the car forward really fast. That's because I wanted Zayed (who was also in the car with Esha) to fall off the car. Of course, Zayed didn't fall off.

He is really good at stunts." However, Esha is adamant that there was no question of her slamming into the police car in front of her. Instead, she was only trying to play a prank on Zayed.

"I admit I applied the brakes very close to the police car, but that was deliberate. I am an expert driver. I've been driving cars since I was 13. I increased the speed, so the brakes were going to come as a big jolt. I wanted to succeed in making Zayed fall off. But alas," laughs Esha, who has recently signed Vikram Bhatt's next film opposite Dino Morea.

Sohail also adds that he was very impressed with Esha's antics at the wheel. "Esha has performed quite a lot of stunts in Cash. She even did a 360-degree car turn without a hitch.