Ann Sheetal is on a roll

Ann Sheetal must really turn heads when she goes down the streets of Kochi. Not only because of her celeb status, but because she is one of the few young women to take up

skateboarding

- or longboarding, as the

Ishq

actor points out -- in Kochi.


“My guy friends used to explain how to do it and I checked out online tutorials. I always like to try out new things and want to be able to do longboard tricks; that is how I started out. Also, I felt it was important that the brain does not stay stagnant sitting at home during the quarantine. And now our streets are a bit quieter than usual, so it provides the perfect opportunity,” she says, adding that the city has a small community of longboarders that people don’t know about. “The community is very helpful to each other.”

Ann, who started out with

roller skating

and rollerblading, says that injuries are inevitable - though she wears a helmet and has been spared so far - and it didn’t seem the ideal sport to take up while committed to a film project. “I’ve anyway committed to movies, so I have to take care of myself. But now, I have the time and am making good use of it,” she says.

Her parents are supportive and pushing her to do things, she explains. “If I say I want to try roller skating, they get me the skates. I’m fortunate that way. I want to practice and graduate to doing serious tricks on my longboard sometime,” she concludes.