Kannada heroine Thaara says being a Hindu, a lot of homework had to go into her playing a Muslim girl in "Hasina", the role that has just fetched her the National Award for best actress.

"I've produced 'Hasina'. I was expecting the film to win some awards. After all it deals with very serious issues...I did a lot of homework to play the Muslim girl," Thaara told IANS.

"I'm a Hindu woman, and Muslim culture is a little beyond my lifestyle. I had to know how a typical Muslim woman lives at home, what she wears, how she talks...

"Fortunately my writer for 'Hasina' was a Muslim woman. She took me under her wing, coached me about the nuances of her culture, even took me to her village to get familiar with the milieu...Also, a lot of the inputs came from my director."

Thaara insists that "Hasina" isn't a slow-paced art film. "We've made it fast- paced and want it to reach out to the maximum number of people. What's the point of making an issue-based film if no one watches it?

"This is one of my first realistic roles. In Karnataka, I'm known more as a commercial artiste. Not that I run around trees. Forget trees, there are no little plants to run around any longer," she jokes.

"In fact I'm in Mysore dancing right now to a fast-paced song. It's crazy. Here I am, a National Award winning actress, doing this unbelievable stuff," she bursts into laughter.

Thaara is now hoping that the National award would help get "Hasina" a large audience. "I don't want it to be just an award-winning film. Because it isn't. It's also a very powerful and gripping story."

She is of course ecstatic about winning the honour - her first National Award - after doing 200 Kannada films.

"I've done films with everyone from (Kannada superstar) Raj Kumar sir whose daughter I've played, to his son with whom I've played the leading lady," said Thaara, whose career started as a child artiste in 1986.

She intends to produce more films.

"It's so encouraging to be given a National award. I want to make more films that give me an opportunity to prove myself as an actress. Earlier I thought about money. Now it's time to seriously think about my reputation as an actress."

Thaara is interested in breaking away from home ground. "I'd love to do Hindi films, if they'll ask me to."