and if you don’t feel like linking, here it is:

BREAKING BARRIERS

The US entertainment industry has had its share of Indian American actors leaving an indelible mark with their acting prowess. Joining the league is a young, talented accomplished dancer and theatre person, Sonal Shah who got well-noticed for her role as Dr.Sunny Dey in the last season of “Scrubs.”

“Scrubs” is back for a 9th season and Sunny will be back in a recurring role.

Sonal’s parents, Bhadresh and Mrudula Shah, hail from Mumbai. They moved from India to the US in 1970 and are based in Wheaton, Illinois since 1977. She too grew up in Wheaton, Illinois and started her career as a competitive dancer. Sonal was named the Miss DuPage County Queen/Ambassador and one of DuPage’s Top Twenty Students. She was honored with the Burshtan/Kiwanis Leadership Award and attended Loyola University of Chicago as a Presidential Scholar. While at Loyola, Sonal received the Weinig Travel Fellowship and graduated with a degree in Theatre and pre-medicine.

Sonal went on to become a surefire staple in the Chicago Theatre Community having performed with The Tony Awardwinning Goodman Theatre among many others. She is a founding member of Rasaka Theatre Company and supplemented her acting education at Improv Olympic Chicago, The Moscow Art Theatre School at Harvard University and she graduated from The Second City Conservatory.

Now all the while tutoring students in calculus and working for a prominent PR firm in her “free” time, Sonal has always been a performer. “But did not necessarily always want to pursue it as a career. I started acting when I was in 2nd grade and was nicknamed “Ak-Tress” from all of our family friends from that point. Growing up, I was heavily involved in school plays, community shows, musicals, variety shows, speech team, and show choir. I also consistently performed dances at our temple and in various competitions, shows, etc. Yes, I was pretty much doomed to be a performer. I was an insane overachiever in high school and was always going from one meeting to another! I always knew I was an actor, but didn’t always want to pursue a career as an actor,” she says.

Sonal wanted to be a doctor and heal people. She even took the MCAT the summer before her Junior year of college. “At some point I kind of simply realized my passion for performing outweighed my passion for wanting to be a doctor. I received a best actress acting award from the university and I was shocked that other people thought I could pursue a career in acting!”

Of course getting a break in this highly competitive industry wasn’t easy. Years of efforts went into it. “Every play I’ve done for free or pay, every class I’ve taken, every table I’ve waited on, every random job I’ve had, every theatre company I’ve been a member of, every student film, every sacrifice I’ve made, every mailing I’ve done, every contact I’ve made…all of the countless hours/money spent on marketing, auditions, training, etc….have led to this “break.” I’ve always wanted to do a sitcom and “Scrubs” in particular…is dream come true.”

Ethnicity, however does come in the way she says. “I love to play Indian roles and I also just love to play roles that are not Indian-specific. I love being Indian, but at the end of the day, I am a person…I am me. Every person is unique in his/her own way and every person has an essence. I enjoy playing roles where I am not necessarily Indian but I am a human. Personally, I feel acting is an amazing art form that can be utilized to spread diversity awareness, abolish ignorance and inspire peace in this world.”

Sonal is actively auditioning and most likely will film a leading role as a high school student in a horror movie. “I’ve been enjoying writing, playing guitar, yoga, hiking, and getting in tip-top shape!”
[ BY LAVANYA GARIKINA ]

I’m not gonna lie… I’ve never been a kid person.  In fact, kids kind of scare me.  They make me nervous.  I never know what to say to them.  And then I get nervous that I’ll say the wrong thing and they will say “I hate you” and either begin to cry or run away.  I should continue the rest of the paragraph in the past tense because my thoughts have changed and you will read why.  People WERE usually shocked to hear about my dislike for kids.  I WAS sort of shocked myself.  Clearly, there WAS something wrong with this.

On October 6, 2009…my dislike for children changed.  My whole perspective on kids shifted.  I fell head over heels in love with Rohan.  Rohan was born and stole my heart.  He is the son of my brother Rajan and his wife Sejal.  He is the first baby in our family.  I love him more than much!  He was born with a full head of hair and a smile.  I never knew I could feel this way about anyone.  I can’t even describe the feeling I have…the amount of love I have for him.  And he’s not even MY kid?!!  I can’t even begin to grasp the feeling I’ll have when I have my own child!  Ok, lets not get carried away here…I need to find a husband first.  Ok…back to Rohan.  This little innocent boy has invaded all of our lives with pure happiness.  I love seeing my dad with him- Its too sweet.  Aww…Rohan’s little laugh makes all of the world’s problems go away.

I was so devastated to not be at the hospital when he was born.  Why was I not there?  Because I was stuck in LA suffocating from this business called Hollywood…trying to get a job…and trying not be a one-hit wonder~!   lol.  I wish I was there.  I sooo wish I was there.  But I wasn’t.  And that time has passed.  And now I can only live in the moment and live without regrets.  There is a reason for everything…or at least I keep telling myself that to make myself feel better.  haha…

I am astonished by Rohan.  First of all, where did he come from??  Ok, I know “where” he come from… but how was he created?  How does he have a little heart and a brain and skin and a nose and a body?  How was this little bundle of joy made? I don’t mean scientifically or biologically people…c’mon, give me a lil credit…I was pre-med once on a blue moon.

Rohan is a miracle.  All babies are miracles.  Life is a miracle.  Really.  Truly.  We were all babies once.

Everything is a joy and an experience with Rohan…from changing his diaper to feeding him to simply holding him.  All of these everyday “things” are so special and important.  Sometimes it takes a baby to remind you about enjoying the little things in life.  Pun intended.

For real?!  I don’t know how I made it to this list of cool people!  Check it out by clicking on this link: http://www.currybear.com/wordpress/?p=3859

Click HERE for a new interview I did with Zoinks!

Hope you are having a swell day!

http://www.zoiksonline.com/2009/12/sonal-shah-brings-sunny-dey-to-scrubs.html

Zoinks is “A magazine of humor, entertainment and pop culture. The best in stand-up comedy and music.”

Also, it is a day that gives me anxiety.  Kind of like New Years.  I mean, so much is going on, it is hard to decide what to do and making that decision is like a mind-numbing catastrophe.  Yes, there are bigger problems in the world over worrying about what do on a holiday- I get that…believe me.  I just can’t help it.  I’m a naturally anxious person and making decisions-large or small- is very hard for me.  You do not want to be caught in my brain when I go to a Walgreens!  It goes nuts.  I could spend hours in a store like that…trying to decide what to get, thinking that I need to get everything I need because I don’t know when I will have time to come back, wondering if I need something or not, running an errand in LA is at least a one hour event, I can’t just get what I need and bounce, or can I?…. ahh!  Its awful.  But it’s part of who I am.  And I am who I am otherwise I would not be me.  I would be someone in a costume.  like those people who dress up on Halloween.  I’m trying to avoid this day with all my might, but it’s not going to happen.  Halloween is also a day where a lot of girls decide its ok to dress in something scandalous.  Instead of judging those girls, maybe, just maybe, I will become one of them.

“The beauty of being lost is the same thing that makes it scary—it asks us to look within ourselves to find the way. If we have no map, we must go on instinct, relying on our inner compass to show us which way to go.”

If you are interested, here are some red carpet picture links by (I’m well aware of the fact that my bangs are messed up…I was nervous and forgot to fix them!):

The Associated Press

http://www.apimages.com/Search.aspx?sh=10&st=k&remem=x&kw=Sonal+Shah&intv=1y

hollywood.com

http://www.hollywood.com/photo/Sonal_Shah_FLIPBOOK_Sonal_Shah/5713243/5713247

wireimage.com

http://www.wireimage.com/SearchResults.aspx?navtyp=SRH&sfld=C&logsrch=1&s=Sonal%20Shah

contactmusic.com

http://www.contactmusic.com/photos.nsf/main/sonal_shah_2609995

Have a happy week!!

http://www.celebutantesisters.com/articles/1946