Acting in films was farthest from her mind while studying to be a fashion designer. But getting crowned the Miss IN Mumbai 2nd runner-up in 2003 changed everything.

Kamna Nimesh Jethmalani, whose "Chhor Do Aanchal" music video is a major hit, says she will take the plunge into tinsel town shooting for a Telugu film, "Venilla", this year. The Mumbai beauty pageant fetched Kamna the offer to star in the music video and since then there has been no looking back.

The 18-year-old actress, who has had people comparing her pretty looks with old time Hindi film actresses, also plans to enter the mega-billion Bollywood film industry.

The teenager from Borivli in Mumbai was in Kathmandu with her dance troupe to usher in the New Year at two of Kathmandu's leading casinos.

In "Venilla', a love story about a college goer wooed by two boys, Kamna plays the title role. The film is scheduled for release in June.

An excited Kamna says the fact that the film is to be made in a different language makes no difference.

"It will be dubbed," she says. What she and her conservative family wanted to ensure was that there would be no revealing clothes - a drill most newcomers in Bollywood have to undergo - and no kissing scenes either.

"Though I started with a music video, I am not an item girl," says the doe-eyed teen. "People say I look fresh and cute rather than hot, even if I wear a short skirt. 'Chhor do Aanchal' was also not that sort of video." Offers from Bollywood started coming in after the video was released but Kamna says she preferred to start with a Telugu film because the role seemed most appropriate.

"It is a heroine-centric role," she says. "Moreover, it suited my personality. One of the first roles I got from Bollywood cast me as a police inspector. I was told I would have to put on weight and build up my muscles. I didn't feel that was my personality."

She says she would like to be paired with someone who is not a newcomer like her.

Though hundreds of starry-eyed newcomers are ready to wear revealing clothes, do "hot scenes" and act opposite any newcomer, Kamna says she is not bothered by the competition.

"I am not competing with anyone," she says calmly. "I have my strong points, they have theirs."