'It's good to be a part of experimental Kannada cinema'

Sheetal Shetty is a household name in Karnataka. The popular TV news anchor is making her acting debut with Rakshit Shetty’s Ulidavaru Kandanthe which will be releasing on March 28.

The Kannada film industry and the audience are eagerly awaiting the release of Ulidavaru Kandanthe. The film is expected to set high standards in storytelling, technical finesse and production values.

The trailer and the music have been a massive hit.

Sheetal plays a journalist in the film. She tells Rediff.com why she decided to take the plunge into movies from television.

You are a successful TV news anchor. How did you decide to take the plunge into movies?

I wanted a break. Seven years of working as a news anchor was getting hectic.

I wanted do something different for a while. That’s when this offer came to me and I decided to go for it.

So you didn’t go around looking for opportunities in acting?

No, I didn’t go looking for an opportunity to act. Apparently, when actor-director Rakshit saw me on TV, he felt I would fit the role.

Suni approached me with the script of Ulidavaru Kandanthe. I found it to be neatly scripted and I liked my role.

What is your role all about in Ulidavaru Kandanthe?

I play a rookie reporter for a national newspaper who sets out to investigate a particular incident.

It is about the people she meets when she is at it, people who have witnessed it or have been a part of it. As she writes her maiden report, the story unravels.

Actually, my screen time is less compared to my voice over as I narrate or report events in the film.

How was your experience of working with actor-director Rakshit?

It was very good. Rakshit and his team are talented and extremely hard working people.

I do not have any prior experience in acting and I shot for 21 days in November 2013. It was a very refreshing change from the TV news studios.

It was rejuvenating. People are experimenting in the Kannada film industry and it is good to be a part of it, albeit a small part.

What next? More acting in films or is it back to the TV studios?

Television is where I belong and that is where I like to be. Acting was just to try out for experience and nothing more.

I have started a company of my own and I will be focusing on that now.

I cannot be a full-fledged actress, but I would like to take up a role if I think I can do justice to it. But I am not desperate to act in movies.

I must add that I am a little nervous. Recently, I dubbed for my lines and it was good to watch myself on the big screen.