After a dream debut in Rajnikant's Valli, where she played the title role, whe was expected to make it to the vacant numero uno position in Tamil films. But three years and several more successes later, Priya Raman i

s still a contender, not a queen. Priya takes stock of her career...

You've had four hits in a row (Kalyanapittennu, Kumkumacheppu, Bhypathi and Asuravamsan) in Malayalam films. But why do producers still prefer other actresses?

Who says they don't ? I turn down a new offer almost every other day, because I'm unhappy wiht the script of the role. I prefer to work at a leisurely pace. After a dream role in films like Fazil's Oru Sneha Theeram, I've had the pick of roles in Malayalam. But I've been careful not to sign films in which all I'am expected to do is look pretty or play the glam doll. I have no wish to sign every film that comes my way just to show I am the heroine who's most in demand, only to run from one location to the next, without the faintest idea what I'd be playing.

Shobhana and Urvassi who came to films around the same time you did, have already hit the slot. So have Annie and Manju Warrier, Who came to films long after you did...

Urvassi and Shobhana did take long to hit the big time. Annie was lucky to make her debut in a much-hyped film. And as for Manju Warrier, Sallapam gave her the kind of launch aspiring actresses can only dream about. People say the average Keralite is not image-conscious, but to me he is. He often overlooks lack of talent if the actress is blessed with good looks of the traditional kind, and all four actresses you mentioned, are. In pavada (fulllenght skirt) and chandanakuri (sandalwood paste), they'd look the typical Malayali lass. Producers of Malayalam films think I'm fit only to play the city-bred, modern girl.

Even after a dream debut with the Tamil film, Valli, you had to sit at home, idle. Why?

I did get a few offers, but all of them were Valli Part Two, Three or Four. All I was expected to do was play the village belle, and prance around in th paddy fields. From the start, I had a definite idea about what I wished to do, and all the roles that came my way weren't quite good enough. So I turned all of them down.

Fortunately, I got some good roles in Malayalam. Likewise, I got good offers like K viswanath's film in Telugu. And in Kannada, I've had films like Neeraj, opposite Shiv Rajkumar and the Sarath Kumar-starrer, Suryavamsham. These sucesses have widened my horizons. Now, I'm willing to take up a good role in films in all the four South Indian languages, even Hindi for that matter. The quality of the role is the only criterion.

You're a Bharatiraja discovery who was launched by Rajnikant. Why has neither of them signed you subsequently?

Bhartiraja Sir may not have found the right role for me. I can't think of another reason. Rajni Sir did call me for Veera, but he himself decided against casting me in it, because the role was very different from the one I'd played in Vaali, and he thought the audience might reject it.

How does it feel when all the new heroines walk away with the best roles on offer, leaving you high and dry?

Well I'm not the over-ambitious kind, so the lack of star status is okay by me. I do crave for stardom, but on my terms. I shall never cut hemlines or wear swimsuits, or sign PR guys to get my photographs splashed on the covers of magazines. Working with filmmakers like Joshi and Fazil has given me the right temperament, and I am used to the nonstarry ways of Malayalam filmdom. I have work enough on my hands, and I'm not the sort who'd grudge other actresses their share of roles. Besides, I believe in Destiny.