Kuljeet quits 'Special Squad', Gauri walks in again

It is all a little mystery in itself. Star One's Special Squad has a little secret of its own. Shaina aka Kuljeet Randhawa has called it quits and Gauri Pradhan is all set to resume from where she left off on Monday, 28 June.

Gauri Pradhan: taking on a challenge

"I had informed them that I will not be available once my feature film is ready for release. There is no animosity here and I left amicably," says Kuljeet, whose film, By Chance is releasing in July.

The surprising thing is that when we asked Kuljeet a month back (See related story), (when Gauri joined the team) if she was thinking of quitting the show, she adamantly said no she wasn't and she also seemed to be in the dark about Gauri's role in the scheme of things. Again, we wonder why one would want to quit a successful show when her film was ready for release. More often than not, actors quit when they have date issues while shooting for a serial and a film simultaneously. Somehow, Kuljeet's reasoning seems to be going just the opposite way or she is seeing something that we are missing! Moreover, no one can bank on a film any more, what if this film does not work out, what will be her plan of action, we wonder.

"I am perhaps more optimistic than you are. Anyways I am doing a couple of ads and am back to modeling," points out Kuljeet vehemently. We hope her optimism stays intact when the box-office results start trickling in! We wish her all the luck.

When we ask the director of the show, Satyam Tripathi about what happened he says that her exit was planned well in advance. "We wanted her character to exit the show and if you see, we have kept her track open. We could get her back when we want to," says Satyam.

However, Gauri seems happy to be back in the squad. "I didn't opt out of the show; I just took a break for a couple of episodes. I had gone to Bankok for my anniversary. It is challenging to do two genres simultaneously...it's challenging and I am enjoying it," says a visibly excited Gauri. When we asked her about her camaraderie with the other actors on the show, she curtly points out, "I am here to do my job. I don't care about anything else. I prefer keeping to myself."

Gauri and Shaina: moving on!

"Initially she was a little quiet, but on the second day of the shoot, she started laughing at some prank that the cast and crew had played and that broke the ice!" says the director, who states that they chose Gauri because she had the personality to suit the character.

Meanwhile, Satyam has laid to rest all doubts about the romantic rack that seemed inevitable, and we wondered if Gauri might be the love interest in Aryan's life. "No we haven't planned anything as yet. You know, the romantic moments cannot have a hurried feeling. They need time to execute and since our show is very fast paced it is difficult to accommodate such emotions. Anyways, we prefer the simmering chemistry than the obvious love scenes. That is more interesting!" says Satyam, in a mischievous tone.

It will certainly be a refreshing change to see Gauri sizzle with someone else on screen for a change!