Entrepreneur Preity means serious business at IPL

Preity Zinta is serious about her business as an entrepreneur. She would rather mind to take care of her own business than signing a movie as an actress. During the Indian Premier League season at least.

The Kings XI Punjab co-owner is busy cheering her team on the field, and discussing business strategies in the board room. She remains upbeat about her team chances of progressing to the knockout stages. “I have left my movies for IPL. It’s like my baby and so I would love to win the tournament with KXIP. This (Kings XI) is my first venture that I believed I wanted to do,” Indian Express has quoted Preity as saying.

Speaking about her journey of ten years with the team, Zinta said,”When I first got into this I never anticipated that it would pan out this way but now it’s been ten to twelve years. After winning my first Filmfare Award, people asked me what would I do after ten years and I said, “Well I’ll be doing business”. But I was told to relax and focus on movies. However, it was always in my head that there is life beyond the movies. So it was a very conscious decision to be involved in sports.”

However, her passion for cricket is comparatively new. “I love sports in general but the passion for cricket has developed only after IPL. I barely saw cricket earlier. But with my time in IPL I have learnt a lot.”

Coming to KXIP’s run this year, Zinta refused to comment citing that it’s too early to talk now. “But our last match was unbelievable and I am confident that we can do well.” But when asked who her favourite player is Zinta replied saying that the one who wins the man of the match is always her favourite.”

Meanwhile, in this year’s IPL one player who has caught her eye is Sandeep Sharma.” It’s incredible how he bowled in the last match and also took one of the best catches in the tournament. He didn’t play a game before and came back with a vengeance. So it shows that if you back yourself you can go a long way.”

Speaking about KXIP’s mantra for success in the IPL, the 42-year-old said: “When we got into the IPL, one thing we were sure of was that KXIP will nurture talent on a grassroot level and build on that. We were the first franchise to have a Kings Cup which provided a platform for local talent to come up and that is the beauty of the IPL. IPL was not solely for entertainment but to give a platform for the youngsters to perform”, she said before singing off.