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MONEY HAS never been a matter of great priority for me. Perhaps because of the kind of upbringing I've

Also read: + Gracy's favourite travel spot: Bidar Click Here + Gracy the Dancing Queen Click Here + Gracy on her Lagaan Adventure Click Here + Cooking with Gracy Click Here + Gracy plays Radha Click Here

had, I'm not overly bothered about it. I never miss a chance to go on a shopping binge. Right from my childhood, I've lived with parental criticism on this count– that I have no value for money. Today, I'm trying to find a balance between spending and saving– but even as I say that I realise how great it feels to be able to spend, spend and spend some more! Before I'd begun to work, I used to feel bad when I had to keep asking my parents for money: it made me feel very dependent. Now, particularly after the success of Lagaan, I have this splendid feeling of independence.

Money also gives you a great deal of confidence because it lets you fulfil all your desires. With it, I can make all my dreams come true: I can go to my favourite places, design my clothes...

I have to admit I'm a compulsive shopper. I start off by going window-shopping and end up with a whole lot of things that horrify my mum. Like, I have so many soft toys that I can open a shop myself! Mum gets very upset when she sees how I spend. I also have a weakness for shoes: I have a cupboardful of them. My designer can't believe that one person would buy so many kinds of footwear.

I use a credit card, and on occasion end up overspending, but for me it's essential to have one: I never know when I've run through my money!

Given all this, I've never given much thought to investing, but now my parents and my accountant tell me it's important for me to save. I depend entirely on my accountant for advice on these matters.

As for charity, I contribute 10 per cent of all my earnings to a gurdwara near our place. It's a tradition that mum inculcated in us, and I practice it even today. I hope to open an orphanage some day, because I enjoy spending on children.

Last year I bought myself a car, a Zen. This year I bought my own house. True, your needs and wants and ambitions grow all the time and you must earn more to keep pace with them. But even so, I wouldn't do only for money something I don't want to do otherwise. Recently, I was offered an ad campaign to endorse a brand of cigarettes, but I refused because I'm opposed to smoking. Again, I wouldn't do a film I don't want to do, just for the money.

This story has been taken from the online edition of iInvestor.com (a personal finance and money matters magazine), as told to reporter Lata Khubchandani. It appeared on 1 April 2002.