Shilpa Shetty and life after Big Brother

Twenty-six days. That's how much time it took Shilpa Shetty to catapult herself from an unknown entity in Britain to an international celebrity. Her stint on Celebrity Big Brother brought her to the big league and the Bollywood actress is flooded with offers to peddle everything from diapers to lottery tickets.

Also in the pipeline are dozens of film and television offers, a book deal and a chance to star in Andrew Lloyd Webber's Bombay Dreams stage revival. Of course, not counting reports of her being nominated for the Nobel Peace prize.

One of the first Bollywood filmmakers to reveal his plans for Shilpa was K Shashilal Nair, someone who doesn't have too many hits to his name. Best known for his titillating Ek Chhotisi Love Story (2002), Nair says he wants Shilpa and arch-rival Jade Goody as protagonists for a new movie.

But Nair hasn't revealed the plot and methinks it cannot be a mere dramatisation of the Jade-Shilpa row. For one, far too many people have seen the video of the Day 14 stock cube argument. And more importantly, would anyone still be interested in it having already witnessed the 'real' fight on the show.

Maybe Shilpa and Jade will star as the premiers of India and Britain respectively in the midst of a diplomatic row. Nah! Or would you rather have Shilpa as a call-centre employee in Bangalore having a telephonic spat with irate UK customer Jade. Plausible but still not interesting enough.

Methinks we should leave Nair to his plots and cheer Shilpa on as she prepares to enter the House of Commons on February 7 to shake hands (and hopefully shake a leg) with British premier Tony Blair, Chancellor Gordon Brown and other parliamentarians.

The biggie for the Indian beauty - a meeting with the Queen - will come on March 12 during a reception at Marlborough House in London to celebrate Commonwealth Day. And that's surely tops Shilpa's itinerary on the British Isles.

DAILY HIGHLIGHTS of Shilpa's stint on Big Brother
Shilpa wins: The final moments
Day 26
Day 25
Day 24
Day 23
Day 22
Day 21
Day 20
Day 19
Day 18
Day 17
Day 16
Day 15
Day 14
Day 13
Day 12
Day 11: Part Two
Day 11
Day 10: Part Two
Day 10
Day 9
Day 8
Day 7
Day 6
Day 5
Day 4
Day 3
Day 2
Day 1

ALSO READ
SPOOF - Shilpa nominated for Nobel Peace Prize
COMMENT - Of India, Sexual Racism and Shilpa Shetty
ANALYSIS - Racism on Big Brother: Shilpa Shetty to win
FORUM - Racism on Big Brother
Shilpa says Jade's behaviour not racial

VIDEOS
The Best of Shilpa Shetty on Big Brother
And the winner is - Shilpa Shetty
Day 14 - The Jade-Shilpa row
Day 11 - Shilpa in the Jackson Five band
Day 20 - Shilpa's Showgirl routine
Day 19 - Shilpa's Aunt Jameela act