I am the female Akshay Kumar Deepika Padukone

Having trained for martial arts for her double role in 'Chandni Chowk To China', Bollywood star Deepika Padukone said it was something she had learnt for life.''You can now call me the female Akshay Kumar.

Learning the martial arts for the role was a huge experience,'' Deepika told mediapersons here last night who was accompanied by her co-star Akshay in the Nikhil Advani directed venture which has been funded by the Hollywood production house Warner Bros.

Deepika admitted that preparing for a Chinese look was not easy. ''We went through 5-6 look tests. We were skeptical earlier, but the final look turned out very well. Later during shooting for the movie, it did not take more than 45 minutes to get the look ready.'

' Speaking about her double role, she exulted, ''The two roles were entirely different in the sense that one was a very chirpy and exciting character and the other was bold, sexy and confident. At the end of it, I'm more than happy to do the twin role.'' She was all praise for Akshay, saying he understood her as a newcomer and was very helpful during the making of 'Chandni Chowk To China'.