Payal Ghosh is all set to make her Bollywood debut with Patel Ki Punjabi Shaadi, a romcom opposite Vir Das. Directed by Sanjay Chhel, the film has her essaying a Gujarati girl and Vir, a Punjabi boy, with Paresh Rawal and Rishi Kapoor playing their respective fathers.

“Vir is extremely jovial and fun to work with. I was also happy working with stalwarts like Pareshji and Rishiji,“ says Payal, who celebrates her birthday today. She was bitten by the acting bug during her college days. At 17, she came to Mumbai to realise her dreams. While studying in an acting academy, she met Chandrasekhar Yeleti, who offered her the lead role in his Telugu movie Prayanam opposite Manchu Manoj.

Later, she acted in Mr Rascal and Oosaravelli (Telugu), and the Kannada film, Varshadhare. “I always dreamt of being a part of the film industry, but I belong to a conservative family. Earlier, my parents did not approve of me venturing into acting. Gradually, they were convinced by some of my relatives and now, they are cool about it,“ she says.