Trisha eyes B town

Popular South Indian actress Trisha Krishnan began modelling when she was 16 years old before becoming Miss Chennai in 1999 and missing out on a chance to become Miss India in 2001.

She got her big-screen break in Priyadarshan's Leysa Leysa, which was followed by Mounam Pesiyadhe the movie that fetched her a Filmfare Tamil Best Debutante Award in 2002.

"Laysa Laysa was a nice way to begin my career. Director Priyadarshan gave me the right guidance and later I was lucky to get another solid role in Mounam Pesiyadhe directed by Aamir Sultan... that helped me immensely in my acting," says Trisha about her smooth transition from modelling to acting.

She hit the big league with Tamil blockbusters Saamy and Ghilli, opposite superstars Vikram and Vijay, respectively. Then she made her debut in Telegu cinema with the hit Varsham that fetched her Best Actress trophies at every Telegu award function in 2004.

The following year she swept all the awards for her act in the Telugu hit Nuvvostanante Nenoddantana starring Siddharth (of the Rang De Basanti fame).

Trisha is keen to establish herself as an actress with substance in Tamil movies, in which she has mostly been playing bubbly characters. Next she will be seen in a different light in the much-awaited Vinnaithaandi Varuvaayaa where she will team up for the first time with acclaimed director Gautam Menon and upcoming star Silambarasan.

"Vinnathaandi Varuvaayaa offers me a different role with a fantastic character graph. It is a love story, where I play Jessie, a strong-willed girl," she says.

Trisha enjoyed the exotic locales of the film: New York, New Jersey, Pennsylvania and Malta, where some of the songs were choreographed to AR Rahman's score. Vinaathaandi Varuvaayaa is Rahman's first collaboration with Menon and it has turned a boon for Trisha as the songs have topped the music charts. This will definitely help the film.

Meanwhile the actress is looking forward to her Bollywood debut later this year in Priyadarshan's Khatta Meetha co-starring Akshay Kumar. "I am happy that my original mentor, Priyadarshan, is launching me in Bollywood too and my debut opposite Akshay Kumar is like icing on the cake."

The foray in Bollywood could make her not only a national star but also enable her to reach out to the global audience.

However, the actress says she will not abandon South Indian films as "South Indian films will always be my first love." According to Trisha, adding Hindi films to her portfolio will just help her develop further as an actress.