In a scene filled with ‘glam dolls',who see skin show as a means to establish a niche for themselves in the film industry, this pretty actress, with a "typical girl-next-door" image, stands out for charting a course different from her contemporaries in Bollywood.

Amrita Rao, who has, in the last few years, attracted the notice of cinegoers with her girl-next-door portrayals in 'The Legend of Bhagat Singh', 'Ishq Vishq' and 'Deewar', seems a complete antithesis of the modern "glam doll brigade" (Mallika Sherawat, Neha Dhupia, Meghna Naidu et al) who believe in the dictum that "only sex sells at the box office."

The ‘Ishq Vishq' and ‘Main Hoon Na' actress Amrita Rao feels that it is an actor's ability to attract the audience through her performance, and not merely skin show and glamour, that ensure a long run in the industry.

''Glamour (and skin show) may get one an entry in to the industry and a few roles initially but an actor's longevity in the industry depends essentially on her ability to draw audiences. Only if you can act well and attract audiences with your portrayals do you stand a chance to make it big in Bollywood,'' Amrita says.

Talking to press on the eve of her next releases, Mahesh Manjrekar's ‘Life Ho To Aisi' and John Mathew Mathon's'Shikhar',Amrita refuted the view that a majority of roles today were coming the way of actresses who had no qualms in indulging in 'skin show'.

‘'There are enough opportunities in the industry for serious actors as well. In fact, presently there is a huge demand for actors who can perform well (rather than just show off their glamour).Filmmakers are in dire need of good actors.''

Amrita should know. For following the success of her last film Farah Khan's ‘Main Hoon Na', where she featured alongside Shahrukh Khan, Sushmita Sen and Zayed Khan, the actress received countless offers for performance-oriented roles where she was ''more than just an eye candy.''

No wonder then, the post-‘Main Hoon Na' period has seen Amrita establish herself as an actress to reckon with in Bollywood, bagging roles in big banner films like Mahesh Manjrekar's ‘Life Ho To Aisi', John Mathew Mathen's ‘Shikhar', Indra Kumar's ‘Pyare Mohan' and, most recently, Sooraj Barjatya forthcoming directorial venture ‘Vivah'.

The films have her rubbing shoulders with accomplished actors like Ajay Devgan, Vivek Oberoi and Sanjay Dutt. While in ‘Life Ho To Aisi', she plays the lead along with her ‘Ishq Vishq' co-star Shahid Kapoor, Amrita also rubs shoulders with Sanjay Dutt, in ‘Shikhar' she gets an opportunity to work with intense actor Ajay Devgan.

For the actress, the two releases come after a long hiatus since ‘Main Hoon Na', released in May, 2004.

''The long gap occurred as ‘Life Ho To Aisi' has been long in the making. The film was actually supposed to be released in December last year. But since, it is a fantasy film with a lot of special effects, a lot of time and effort went into the making as the producers did not want to spare any effort in making it a perfect fantasy film,''Amrita said.

She is also excited about John Mathew Mathen's ‘Shikhar', where she is again cast opposite Shahid. The film also has Ajay Devgan in a key role.

‘'The film has been made really fast. We started shooting for it just about an year ago and now the film is slated for release on December 16,'' she said.

For Amrita, working in ‘Shikhar' has been an enriching experience in that she got an opportunity to work with a brilliant filmmaker like John Mathew Mathen, who made ''an exceptional film like ‘Sarfarosh,'' as well as an accomplished actor like Ajay Devgan.

‘'John Mathew Mathen is a brilliant filmmaker. Having worked with him once, I feel like working in each of his films. As for Ajay, I must say that despite being one of the most sought after actors in the industry, he came across to me as an extremely down-to-earth actor. He is one actor who has not been carried away by his success,''she said.

Among the other films on the anvil is Indra Kumar's ‘Pyare Mohan' where she is featured alongside Vivek Oberoi. Then there is Sooraj Barjatya' ‘Vivah', which she signed recently.

‘'Bagging a role in a film by a prestigious filmmaker like Sooraj Barjatya, who has made such great films as ‘Maine Pyar Kiya', ‘Hum Aapke Hain Kaun' and ‘Hum Saath Saath Hain', is definitely a big achievement for me,''she says.

It is notable that three of her forthcoming films -‘Life Ho To Aisi', ‘Shikhar' and Sooraj's ‘Vivah' - have cast her opposite her ‘Ishq Vishq' co-star Shahid Kapoor.

"As a co-star, Shahid is an excellent actor to be working with. In fact, from the day I started working with Shahid, he came across to me as a serious and deicated actor who tries to do his role with utmost perfection. At the same time, one cannot say I have worked with him often. In fact, it has been two and a half years since I was last paired with Shahid in my debut venture ‘Ishq ishq',''Amrita said.

According to Amrita, after the success of ‘Main Hoon Na', she turned down a lot of offers as she was extremely cautious about her choice of films. Of late, however, she seems to have realised that being extremely choosy may not be a sound policy.

Whatever films she might choose, Amrita is clear on one score; that she will not indulge in ‘skin show' on screen.

''Every actor has her own priorities. We all know what is our limit. I for one am not willing to indulge in skin exposure on screen. You can't do a particular scene and then rationalise it saying the character demanded it. Fortunately for me, I have worked with nice people like Farah Khan who respect you as an actor and do not force you to do something that is against your sensibilities,''she said.