Nausheen's film career takes off - finall

The small screen's erstwhile Kkusum, Nausheen Ali Sardar, finally makes her big screen debut with writer-director Nisha Chainani's Marathon. She features in this film opposite Bikram Saluja.

Nausheen will also be seen in Sandeep Shinde's Vivash, directed by Navneet Baj Saini, which has Lucky Ali has her co-star. This had made the actress wary of talking about her film projects. "That's why I refrained from talking before hand till the film was on the floors and nearing completion," points out Nausheen. "Now that I have been shooting for Marathon from several days and, moreover the film is nearing completion, I can talk about it," she says.

In Marathon, Nausheen plays the character of Sapna, a doctor who is the love interest of Bikram Saluja's character. "The film is about a bunch of characters preparing for a marathon. Bikram's character is one of them and on account of an injury lands up in hospital where he meets me." As Sapna, she is extremely anglicised and will be seen in skirts. There is also a romantic song picturised on us."

The offer for Marathon came from Vicky Tejwani, one of the producers of the film. "I received a call from them and they explained to me the script and role and I was on." Besides Saluja and Nausheen, the cast of Marathon includes Mandira Bedi, Sammir Dattani and new-find Chitrita Mitra among others. Meanwhile in Vivash, Nausheen essays the role of Lucky Ali's wife. "It is a thriller and deals with problems between a couple.

The film also stars Rajpal Yadav and Jackie Shroff. We have already started shooting for this project as well," she says. Nausheen was last seen on television as the celeb anchor of Crime Patrol (Sony) in November.

After Kkusum, she featured in the Star Plus thriller KalChhakra. On the theatre front, Nausheen has been in Dinyar Contractor's Maar Diya Jaay, Ya Chhod Diya Jaay and Nikita Wadia's Kkusum Manhar Lele.

"There were some offers for theatre but now I am concentrating on my films," says Nausheen who began her television career as anchor with Chit Chat on etc channel. "As for being back on the soap circuit, she says, "Unless there is something substantial, I just don't want to do the same old stuff on television," says Nausheen who had quit the Balaji drama Kkusum on Sony after it took a generation leap.