There was a wide vacuum after the sudden demise of Silk Smitha, the vamp of South cinema. And now, with the arrival of Mumtaz, the slot seems to have been filled. She came as the heroine in T Rajinder’s Monisha En Monalisa and went on to play the vamp in films. Her dance number, “Malay Malay ...” in Choclet put her in the forefront. Distributors today want her in every film as she is the talk of the town. With success, follows the flood of gossip about her.

There are reports that you acted in semi-nude scenes in Queen which has been supposedly dubbed from Hindi?

Has anybody seen the film? It’s a story of a girl from the red-light area. I did the Hindi film Boond much before I came to Chennai. It’s actually a very nice film and I wanted to remake it in Tamil. I even had a producer ready and Thankar Pachan agreed to direct it. Somehow the rights went to someone else. And was thus publicised in a wrong way.

Don’t you think the public will get fed of seeing you in glam doll roles?

Glamour alone cannot sustain for long. The moment the audience is tired of me in glamour roles, I will change tracks and do homely roles.

Have you made any successful moves in that direction?

I am playing a homely girl in Oscar Movies next venture. In fact I want to do roles like Sridevi did. After I saw Sadma, I became her fan. In Vivaramana Aalu, I have played a mentally deranged grl like Sridevi in Sadma. Let me tell you the truth. I am not happy doing these sexy dances. But what to do? It is my fate!

It is alleged that you are turning down films where you have only one dance number. Instead you want to do a full length role.

Recently I rejected a film from a big banner and a big heroine did that solo dance number. The only film where I have done a dance number is Oscar Movies' Roja Kootam and this was fulfilling an obligation.

In Star, you are just a glorified dancer.

I was told by the director that I was the heroine of the film. But he reduced me to just a sexy dancer in the film. I was cheated.  

Producers are allegedly complaining about your insistence in charging heavy amounts for costumes, which are designed by your designer?

I don’t think it’s a great amount of money. It’s always better to design the clothes you wear on screen and the price I ask is not much.

Another complaint is that you are charging as much as that for a heroine's role?

(Laughs) Is that so? Then why am I still staying in rented house?

Did you anticipate a big reception in Tamil cinema?

No. I came to do just one film in Chennai. And I had planned to go back after that. Only when I reached here, did I realise the possibilities and learnt how big the filmdom is here. I saw many of the Mumbai girls doing well here. Thanks to my Tamil fans even I am doing well now.