Not so long back, actor Gul Panag had participated in a few dare-bare photo shoots that had led to soaring temperatures amongst men.

Though in her Bollywood outings Gul is content dressing up as per her character, she is sure that none of her earlier photo shoots have any bearing on the work that she does for the big screen.

“Even when I did those photo shoots, the idea was not to stun or shock people,” says Gul who was seen in a serious film like Rann earlier this year and would now be seen in a comedy revolving around sexual harassment at the work place. “There was never an attempt to hunt or beg for anything. That’s not me.”

Still, did it ever play in her mind that sexy photo shoots would wake up those film-makers who could be carrying a set perception about her, courtesy offbeat films like Manorama – Six Feet Under, Dhoop, Dor and Straight that she has done in the past?

“If that was the case, I would have done one of those bold films that required a leading lady to expose, isn’t it? Since I never did any such film, this argument by itself is self defeating,” pat comes the reply from Gul.

Talking about ‘bold’ wardrobe choices off screen too she says, “If I have to step into a pool, I will wear a swimming costume, right? What else does one wear? When I was just 9 or 10 years old, my parents got me a bikini because they wanted me to be comfortable in a pool. There is nothing shocking or any big deal about wearing a bikini.”

Talking about her role in her new movie, she says, “I am proud of my glam roles – I am a hot, hip and a sexy chick and I’m proud of that.”