Preity the cheif for time being.

On one side it was Vidya's magic, then on the other was Preity.
It’s always fun to be in Kolkata :-) looking forward to some rosgullas! Chomp! Chomp! I love it! Say's Preity.

But at the launch of a cooking oil at an EM Bypass star address, for which she was in town for a few hours as brand ambassador, there was very little to indicate that Preity was enjoying her Calcutta stint. The famous dimpled smile was absent for the most part. The mood was sombre. Dressed in a black sequinned tee, fitted blue denims and aviator sunglasses, it was the usual pretty Preity, but the cold disconnected attitude was very unlike the usual friendly Preity.

That Bolly’s bubbly girl and co-owner of IPL team Kings XI Punjab was not to be messed with was further reinforced at the beginning of the launch of Healthy & Tasty, an edible oil range from the Emami Group with the announcement, “No IPL questions and no film and personal queries, please.” With just one film in hand (the long delayed Jahnu Barua directed Har Pall) and with her cricket team mired in one controversy after another, the request didn’t come as much of a surprise.

As it turned out Preity was only willing to talk a lot about cooking oil and a little about her culinary skills! “I am a very, very good cook and can cook almost everything. Anyone who savours good food and has a taste for different kinds of cuisine will invariably turn out to be a good hand in the kitchen,” were the words of wisdom from the Salaam Namaste star.

And after years of endorsing beauty products, watches, soft drinks and cars, her reason for waxing eloquent on the goodness of refined edible oil? “I am extremely health conscious and so is my family. Most of us lead a hectic lifestyle and have little or no time to hit the gym. The only way we can keep healthy is by eating healthy. For most Indians, the kitchen is the gym,” said Preity.

There was more gyan to come. “I have always believed that quality is more important than quantity. That shows in my films, my cricket team and my endorsements,” said the 36-year-old who has been signed on as the brand’s “fun and wow factor”. (Factors that were clearly missing at Saturday’s interaction.)

But while Zinta’s lips were zipped on the Yuvrajs, Sangakkaras and Brett Lees of her team, she couldn’t stop gushing about Team India and Chennai Super Kings skipper Mahendra Singh Dhoni, the co-ambassador of the oil brand.

“Dhoni is always a lot of fun and we had a great time shooting for the television commercial,” Preity smiled. (Finally.)

“The ad is fun and crazy and extremely easy on the eye. Prahlad Kakkar has rocked the ad. Dhoni and I play superheroes. Can you imagine how much fun we had shooting?” added Preity, before donning a chef’s cap and apron and brandishing a ladle.

No, she didn’t cook. She just cut open an oil packet and zipped right out of town.