After 'Anand' and 'Godavari' became blockbusters, everyone thought she will be the next big thing in the industry.Her sky rocketing career didn't take off at the pace her fans thought it would.With no regrets of where she is today, Kamilini Mukherjee is back with whistle worthy performance in the latest release 'Nagavalli'. An interview with Kamilini.

You look a million bucks after losing weight. Is this for a role?

Kamilini:It was just a wake up call and I realised I was chilling and need to be more fit. So I started working out. It is purely coincidental that my slimmer look worked for my charecter in Nagavalli where I play a mentally disturbed girl who is kept indoors for two years. Also when I started shooting for Nagavalli, I fell ill which actually worked wonders for the role in Nagavalli.

There are rumours that she was not happy with the length of her role in 'Nagavalli'?

Kamilini:I am happy with the time I got to be on screen in 'Nagavalli'.Infact the director and the team worked on my charecter and added a song to it which wasn't the case with in its Kannada version. I have done such short length roles in 'Happydays' et al. The duration of my role never bothered me as long as I got to perform and my presence has relevance to the story.

You were last seen in 'Maa Annaya Bangaram' starring with Rajasekhar. While most of your contemperaries who are far less critically acclaimed chose to work with A-league stars, why does you work with a star from any league?

Kamilini: For me, script, my role and the director I am working with matters and not the co-star.I know that most starlets work in projects with hardly any role just because a big hero is acting it.That is a conventional way of working. But I don't measure my career graph on the basis of how big the hero I worked with. I see if I am growing as an actor and the kind of roles I have played than whom I am seen on screen with. For me acting with Sharwanand or Venkatesh next to me is all the same. Script is my hero. I would like to work with any actor as long as my role is challenging and different from the ones I did before

Your last few movies like 'Maa Annaya Bangaram' and 'Bramhanandam drama company' in Telugu went unnoticed. Do you regret signing those films?

Kamilini: "In Maa Annaya Bangaram, I played the role of a timid spineless girl, something I haven't done before.I am always in look out for roles I haven't played before. I was being typecast and so I am glad I decided to come out of it and something unconventional.Otherwise it would have been boring for me and the audience too.The day acting bores me, I would venture into a new branch of cinema perhaps.If I stick to the same image comfortable in that zone, I would n't have viewed myself with a compliment."

We don't see you in parties or events in Hyderabad. Why?

Kamilini: "I am very recluse and maintain a low profile.I am perpetually hiding. I always promote my films pre and post release but I am not someone who will be conciously seen at events to build my PR. Even when I am in Hyderabad, I would finish my shoots and do things that have nothing to do with cinema. I know that by being in Hyderabad and attend events, be seen and get clicked, I might get more offers. But I would like to stay in Mumbai because it gives me that personal space. I let my work speak for itself".

What movies have you signed now?

Kamilini: I am doing a film with Venu in SP Entertainment banner and has two more Telugu films in my kitty which will go on floors in the next two months.I is also looking forward to doing her first Bengali movie which was to start shooting long ago.

Despite her goody two shoes image, you had your share of controversy too. You were potrayed nude in national award winning Malayalam film ' Kutty Shranku'. Did this controversy hurt you?

Kamilini: "I am not a net savy person and so I didn't pay attention to it initially. But my mom told me that it is doing the rounds on youtube now. It is an award winning cinema and I did a decent job but people are making an issue out of that 100 seconds visual.People are ignoring the value of that movie by cringing about that scene.The episode made me angry.When I wore a saree, a few said she only wears saree and can't carry off western attire. When I wore modern outfits they said something else. People will forget all this soon and only a great movie called 'Kutty Shranku' will be remembered".