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Kareena: I had a huge crush on Akshaye Khanna

The gorgeous Kareena Kapoor did not always have her famous curves.

There was a time she was a chubby teenager, and called herself a 'tomboy'.

After she joined the movies, Kareena groomed herself into one of the hottest actresses in the industry. She experimented with her looks through the years -- from her blonde look which she later regretted to her Size Zero phase that lasted quite a while.

In a book that she has co-authored along with Rochelle Pinto -- The Style Diary of a Bollywood Diva -- Kareena talks in detail about her various fashion inspirations, and gives interesting tips on style, diet and fitness.

Here's the first part of an excerpt from the book:

I used to be just Bebo, the girl next door. Both Lolo and I lived a pretty regular middle-class life in South Mumbai. Our weekends were spent between going to church with Mom and swimming with our friends at the Breach Candy club.

That was as far as our diva upbringing went! The only time I would be the centre of attention was on 21 September: my birthday.

But even then it was the Goriawala Care Bear birthday cake which was the real star of the party, not me. It was the one indulgence my parents would allow me, without any fuss.

Excerpted from the book Kareena Kapoor The Style Diary of a Bollywood Diva with Rochelle Pinto, published by Penguin Books India, with the publisher's permission, Rs 700.

'I'd beg my mom to bring out the camcorder and film me dancing to a Sridevi song'

Even when we moved to Lokhandwala when Lolo became an actress, they would get the cake delivered all the way home. Everybody who knew me at that time will tell you this was the high point of my life!

People seem to think that I had some sort of pampered-princess upbringing, with a hundred attendants waiting on me hand and foot. I wish! My closest brush with the world of glamour as a child was watching my grandmother get dressed to go to the Cricket Club of India.

Every time she began to get ready, I would sit right beside her and watch her every move. I will never forget how daintily she applied her bright red Lakme lipstick.

As soon as she was out the front door, I'd rush to her room try on the lipstick myself, and strike silly poses in front of the mirror. Then I'd beg my mom to bring out the camcorder and film me dancing to a Sridevi song.

'I looked like a girlie girl with pink cheeks, but in my heart of hearts I was a tomboy'

As I grew older, the naughty streak in me kicked into high gear. I never got into trouble with the teachers, but I became notorious in school for being a complete firebrand.

I may have looked like a girlie girl with pink cheeks and long hair, but in my heart of hearts I was a complete tomboy.

I wouldn't even hesitate to get into a fight, especially if they had insulted someone I was close to. Some things never change. I'm still as protective about the people I love. But I think I've quite outgrown the physical violence bit!

'My mom's list of dos and don'ts included my not straying too far away from home'

We were a close group of friends, always hanging out at each other's houses or in the building compound. Once in a while, we'd sneak off to Dig Inn in Bandra or Candies at Pali Hill to snack on their still popular chicken sandwiches.

My mom's list of dos and don'ts included my not straying too far away from home. By the time I was a teenager, she was travelling a lot with Lolo.

So the rule was enforced with even more gusto but it also meant she couldn't keep an eye on me 24/7! At that age, there was no way I was going to pass up this window of opportunity.

'No canteen food for the Kapoor girls'

Like most kids, we were only allowed to eat home-cooked food because my mother was very particular about our health. Even french fries, which anybody will tell you is my single most-favourite meal in the whole world, was made from scratch in my mom's kitchen.

My regular routine after school was sitting with my plate of fries and ketchup in front of the TV, watching Dynasty or a good Hindi movie.

Our school tiffins were jam or marmalade sandwiches with an apple. No canteen food for the Kapoor girls!

But of course, whenever I got the chance, I'd sneak out to the crushed-ice-gola stall or the roadside paani puri wala on Pali Hill. The sev puris were my favourite, and he knew how to make them exactly like I wanted them: extra spicy. I never told my mother, but I guess I didn't have to.

She always found out because I would always fall sick the very next day, and get a 'serves you right' from her.

When I look back at that time, I'm so grateful to my parents for making sure that I grew up as a normal kid. I got to enjoy the best of both worlds, and I wouldn't change a minute of it.

'Karisma bought me my first piece of designer clothing ever!'

Though I have to say Lolo is undoubtedly the coolest elder sister anyone could have. She never ignored me or treated me like the annoying kid-sister who wanted to follow her everywhere.

In fact, she indulged me quite a bit, taking me around and letting me hang out with her friends. Since she was already earning her own money, I was the beneficiary.

She was probably the person who introduced me to the beautiful world of fashion that I would soon fall completely in love with. She bought me my first piece of designer clothing ever! It was this gorgeous Jean Paul Gaultier newspaper print see-through top.

My friends were even more excited than I once they saw the label. Any special occasion and I would wear my Gaultier top and feel like an absolute star!

'I would blush from head to toe whenever Akshaye Khanna was around'