/> The Shilpa-Gere kiss seems to have had unexpected ramifications. On Saturday a young couple Abhay Kumar and Preeti Payal kissed at a press conference to announce their video album of Bhojpuri songs entitled Honthwa Chusayee (lips will be smooched).

When press persons protested the female -half of the scandalous manoeuvre said, vulgarity was the order of the day.

But Shilpa is far from amused. She has been in touch with Richard Gere. "He feels awful. He's baffled. How can you hold someone responsible for something that he did without ulterior motives? He's a very good humanbeing. He meditates, he works for charity. He doesn't deserve to be hounded this way. "

Shilpa isn't amused by these controversies. "What upsets me is why FIRS and PILs are allowed to be filed for such frivolous issues. These (FIRs and PILs) are rolling out as though they're going out of style. It's terrible! In this country justice for the truly aggrieved is delayed because of these frivolous litigations."

She attributes these ceaseless criticisms to her non-aggressive nature. "People believe I'm sweet and pliable. I do allow myself to be pushed around for the fear of being considered a spoilsport.

But there are limits. Right now I don't want such silly controversies to take away from the release of Metro. I sincerely believe people would've been pleasantly surprised by my performance even if Big Brother hadn't happened."

She's all praise for her direcror Anurag Basu. "He's someone who doesn't glorify his work. But he has come up with a stunning work. Anurag is so driven in spite of going through a life-taking illness. We're both fighters. The more we're pulled down the more we fight back. And he's so open to suggestions and changes on the sets."

Shilpa sighs. "Anurag wrote the film while he was ill. I enjoyed working with the entire cast. I was the senior-most member of the cast. Kangana is like a baby in front of me. And Konkona plays my sister.

I play Shikha, an independent-woman who has given up her career to look after husband and mother. Then she realizes life is slipping by."

Shilpa laughs, "That's precisely what I don't want to happen with my life...Recognition as an actor was a bit hard to come by. But that was because of my glamour quotient.

But all said and done I wouldn't exchange my career and my life for anything. Today I can play a rock star or a housewife. And I can't allow corny controversies to dampen my spirits."