Shweta's 'Mishti' switch

Shweta Basu Prasad is all grown up. The little 'Makdee' and 'Iqbal' girl is ready to shrug off her character artiste garb and march ahead in 'lead'ing strides. She has already made her presence felt in Telugu and Tamil films and, now, Shweta, with a Bengal connect in her genes, is all set to turn heads in Tollywood.
The actor will be debuting opposite 'Amanush' Soham in Soumik Chattopadhyay's as-yet-untitled next.'I was lucky to have bagged the deal without giving a screen test. Mahendra Soni, one of the producers of the project, called me up and asked me to meet them with my portfolio shots. A meeting later, the deal was sealed,' says Shweta, who prefers conversing in Bangla as much as she loves gorging on machh-bhat. The actor clarifies, 'This isn't my first Bengali film. I had acted in Samir Chanda's 'Ekti Nodir Golpo'. Though the film is ready for the past five years, I have no clue when it will see the light of day.'
Considering that she has had a Bollywood debut, what made her shift gears to Tollywood? Shweta answers, 'Post-'Iqbal' and 'Makdee', I was flooded with offers. But my parents wanted me to concentrate on academics then. After that, I ventured into Tamil and Telugu films. I felt, if I was doing regional films, then why not Tollywood?'
Shweta Basu Prasad is currently undergoing a workshop under Debranjan Nag for Soumik's film and she confesses that such a training 'enriches' her as an actor. Talking about her role, the actor elaborates, 'I play Mishti, who is culturally and traditionally rooted. She comes to Kolkata to pursue her studies. What happens next is what the film deals with.'
Incidentally, Shweta is a huge fan of her co-star Soham. 'I used to watch the 'O my love' track on telly. When I saw that Soham would be cast opposite me, I was overjoyed. Now we keep talking about our childhood, schooldays and work, so that we are more comfortable sharing screen space,' she continues.
Soumik, known in the filmi circuit as a 'film encyclopaedia', speaks about his big screen debut, 'This is the comic story about the survival of an ordinary boy. And I felt that Soham was best-suited for the part. As for Shweta, producer Shrikant da saw her in a Tamil film and zeroed in on her. She has an innocence to her, which is required for Mishti's character.'
The shooting for this will commence from November 24 either in Hyderabad or Kolkata.And while on Shweta, industry is abuzz with the news that she has been roped in for Goutam Halder's next. Ask her to confirm or deny the rumours and the actor is tightlipped. After some coaxing, all she is ready to blurt is, 'I'll not comment on this right now.' Even Halder is not too keen to spill the beans just yet. 'It's in a preliminary stage. Once the project takes shape from the first week of December, can divulge more.'
So, will Shweta be a part of this venture? To this the film-maker answers, 'I have just had a primary discussion with her. But I repeat, nothing has been finalized yet.'
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