Forget the demure, girl-next-door impression you have of Hong Kong singer-actress Gigi Leung.

For Just Another Pandora’s Box, the 33-year-old doe-eyed beauty plays a wacky princess who is constantly “wolfing down durian and sesame paste”.

“Those eating scenes were really funny. I remember that I had to stop myself from bursting into laughter on several occasions,” said Gigi in an e-mail interview with FiRST.

She’s best remembered for her roles in the romantic dramas Tempting Heart (1999) and Turn Left, Turn Right (2003).

Prior to Just Another Pandora’s Box, the wildest character she has played was a foul-tempered, foul-mouthed gambler in the 2002 Chinese New Year comedy Fat Choi Spirit.

Despite her serious and no-nonsense image, Gigi said she is quite different off-screen.

“Actually, I can be quite humorous at times, especially with my friends,” she said.

“I believe I have the comic genes in me.”

She thoroughly enjoyed working with co-star Ronald Cheng as well.

“It’s our debut film together. He is a fun guy on set, always cracking jokes to entertain the crew and cast.”

She hopes to take on “more challenging roles” in the future and has a strong desire to work with “masterful directors”.

“I feel that there’s still lots of room for improvement in my acting,” she added.

Away from work, Gigi’s personal life has also made the headlines.

Formerly in a relationship with hunky Storm Warriors leading man Ekin Cheng, she is currently dating a French furniture designer.

They have been together for three years, but her family still finds it hard to accept her significant other, she revealed to Hong Kong reporters last month.

Gigi said: “My family is conservative. They could not accept my relationship with my foreign boyfriend, but they’ve respected my decision (to be with him).”

This article was first published in The New Paper.