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Red Moon · 31-01-2007, 08:21 AM

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SHILPA: I'M SO HONOURED
SHILPA: MY STORY
By Julie Mccaffrey And Fiona Cummins

CELEBRITY Big Brother winner Shilpa Shetty is set to meet the Queen.

And Tony Blair also wants to welcome her to the House of Commons.

Stunned Shilpa said yesterday: "It's a huge honour. I am humbled."

The Bollywood star - at the centre of a race storm after being viciously bullied by Jade Goody, Jo O'Meara and Danielle Lloyd - has become an international ambassador for tolerance and understanding.

Her dignified handling of their cruel taunts - and her gracious decision to forgive them - made headlines around the world.

Now Shilpa, 31, will come face-to-face with the Queen after receiving an official invite to attend a reception at Marlborough House in London to celebrate Commonwealth Day on March 12.

She will also visit the Commons on February 7, where the PM, Chancellor Gordon Brown and a raft of senior MPs will be queuing to shake her hand.

The actress is now fully aware of the furore that erupted outside the Big Brother house over her conflict with Jade and Co.

She said: "The row has been politicised but why wouldn't I want to meet Tony Blair? I would meet with anyone who wants to meet me and who has shown solidarity."

Shilpa confessed she was glad mum of two Jade had checked into rehab.

She added: "I have respect for her. She is taking it seriously and I know that she has done it for her children rather than showing off to the world. I know Jade that much."

She was also shaken to learn about Jo's dramatic appearance on GMTV yesterday, in which she wept and shook uncontrollably.

"Jo looks shattered. My heart goes out to her. I feel terrible. We did connect on some level," she said. "There is no rancour and hate is such a horrible word. I feel sorry for what she and Jade are going through.

"It was very juvenile bullying. It was like being in school - but I don't think they would say the same things today."

Still not quite able to believe she had won, Shilpa revealed that taking part in the show was "the most courageous and difficult thing I have ever done in my life".

She said: "I was away from home, in a different country with a different culture, where I wasn't known as a celebrity.

"I signed the contract two days before I flew - it happened so suddenly. It was the first time I had travelled alone."

But she vowed never to take part in a reality TV show again, insisting: "No way. I was shocked by the lack of respect, the burping, farting, drinking and swearing.

"Great Britain is where Shakespeare was from - it's known for its culture and high tea but I didn't see any of that, apart from Cleo."

Shilpa dismissed complaints from her fellow housemates that she was "superior and controlling".

She insisted: "I was never controlling - I just wanted to go with the flow. There was never a time when I said, 'You have to do it my way'. When Jade said I was spending too much time in the kitchen, I took a back seat. I like to defuse trouble."

She said her sometimes hurtful experiences in the house had helped her to emerge a stronger person.

Even the psychologist who assessed her before her victory press conference was astonished by her steely character. She laughed: "I saw the psychologist and he was showing me all the clippings but I was trying to do my make-up. Finally he said, 'You don't need me - you're just too grounded'."

And despite the uproar her appearance on the show created, Shilpa admitted: "I don't regret it for a single millisecond. It has given me so much. It's just the beginning." And indeed it is. Shilpa has been bombarded with offers from companies such as Tesco and the Indian Tourist Board.

She has also been approached about writing a book, has dozens of film and TV offers and Andrew Lloyd Webber is said to be keen for her to star in a musical.

Back home in India, Shilpa was splashed across every front page as the country revelled in her triumph.

Virtually overnight she has been promoted from the Bollywood C-list to international fame. And the media wasted no time in analysing her meteoric rise.

The Hindustan Times summed up the mood with a headline that screamed: "After Big Brother, Big Bucks for Shilpa."

But Shilpa, who has starred in more than 40 Bollywood films, is in no hurry to make any snap decisions and will be thinking over her future very carefully.

"I'm knackered right now," she said with untypical bluntness. "I just need to get some sleep and I want to unwind.

"All the creative decisions are taken by me and all the financial ones by my mother. I don't even know how much I make, I'm so blase about money.

"I'd love to do a cookery show called. 'If Shilpa Can, Anyone Can'." With a mischievous grin she added: "Or maybe I should do an advert for chicken Oxo cubes."

Whatever happens, Shilpa plans to stay in Britain for the foreseeable future.

She explained: "My visa has been extended and I am going to stay in the UK for a bit."

The news has come as a major disappointment for her biggest fan - and biggest critic - her proud sister Shamita.

Shamita, who is also an actress, turns 28 tomorrow and hoped Shilpa would be back in Mumbai to help her celebrate.

That won't be happening now, but the pair have spoken by phone.

Shilpa smiled as she recalled: "My sister told me, 'You have never won any awards for your films - but you won the biggest award when you were playing yourself..."

Source: The Mirror