Praising the 38-year-old supermodel for her "down to earth attitude" Hooda says "Naomi is not at all the kind of person she is made out to be. She is very funny, friendly and very very cool".
Meanwhile, the 'D' actor is quite perked up these days for his next release 'Rang Rasiya,' a film on the life of 19th century Indian painter Raja Ravi Varma and his relationship with muse 'Sugandha' played by Nandana Sen.
Hooda insists "he did not have to go through rigorous painting workshops for the film though he learnt some basics of painting".
"The film actually deals with the human side of Raja Ravi Varma and the relation he shared with his muse Sugandha. It depicts the journey of the painter from a 20-year-old to 60 years. It is very human story and a love story," he said over phone.
The 32-year-old actor adds that painting is also an integral part of the movie. "Painting is also a part of this film, the passion that Raja Ravi Varma had for the art turned him into the legend that he is. But the film also explores the sensitive relation he had with Sugandha," he said.
Hooda who began his career with Mira Nair's 'Monsoon Wedding' has now teamed up with veteran director, Ketan Mehta for 'Rang Rasiya'.
Describing Mehta as "highly imaginative" Hooda praises the director as someone "who gives actors their due credit and ample scope of experimenting with the character that they are playing".
Hooda says both he and Mehta had extensive script-reading sessions before the shoot. The actor also believes that he and the director "shares the same vision for a movie so co-ordination between the two is very necessary".
Box-Office success has so far eluded Hooda who is known to play off-beat characters. His last film "Ru Ba Ru" did not do well either. The actor admits that he has "at times made the mistake of choosing characters over films".
"But I am proud of all my films, I did some good quality work, I want to do quality work and keep on honing my acting skills," he adds.
With a lot of interesting projects lined up Hooda is hopeful that this year would be an eventful one. "Love Khichidi, Mere Khwabon Me Jo Aaye, Kushar Prasad Ka Bhoot are some of my future films which are lined up for release this year," he said.
Hooda who is also a keen polo player recently broke his ankle after he slipped off a horse during a game of polo. "I will rest for a while now, some six weeks and right now I am walking with the help of crutches," he said.
