Not easy being a soap star...
As the make-up team does its job, Sampada tells us about her move from the corporate scene to the arc lights. "I never planned to be an actress," she says, "until that first commercial." Within a few months, she was modelling full-time. More commercials followed, as did a music video. Offers for serials did crop up, but she was happy just modelling.
"I got to see the world. I was happy with the money. But, three years into it, I felt I had done enough and decided to examine the offers from TV." Unlike the horror stories that abound, she didn't have to struggle. "I simply auditioned for my first serial and was selected. The best part was the entire shoot on board a cruise liner moving from Singapore to Malaysia."
The shift from modelling to acting wasn't that simple. "With modelling, you need a good figure and have to look unusual, though not necessarily attractive. Modelling and acting are very different, and the latter is a lot more difficult."
For every success story, there are more than a few about failure. Sampada tells us about a former model who has been trying to get into acting for years but fails at every audition because she can't emote. "I don't think anyone can take acting for granted," she says. "Modelling may give you your first break, but if you're not good enough, people will throw you out."