Once Shanti, now Nikita: Mandira Bedi

Nineteen years after she made her TV debut in the Doodarshan serial "Shanti", Mandira Bedi, looking better than ever before, has struck back into the idiot box with her RAW agent act in "24". She says she is surprised by her character Nikita Rai's popularity.

"There is no getting away from the serial's impact. Everywhere I go, people insist on calling out 'Nikita', just as they used to shout out 'Shanti' 19 years ago when they saw me in public," said Mandira, reports IANS. "Believe me, I am as bowled over by the serial as any one else. I am confined mostly to one section of the goings-on during shooting, so I haven't even met many of the cast members."

"I don't know how the episodes finally look. So, I watch them from the edge of my seat with my husband Raj (Kaushal) and son Vir, like the rest of the nation. In fact, this weekend I recorded the episodes as I was shoot- ing nights for the serial."

Everyone seems to enjoy "24" to the hilt except maybe her little son who finds "mom" missing during bedtime. Mandira's voice melts with maternal longing when she says, "For the last five days, we've been shooting nights and my son has to make do without me. He (usually) sleeps with his arms tightly around me. So, while I am sleuthing on the sets as Nikita, I am also wondering how my son is coping without me," Mandira said.

"Of course, my husband is extremely supportive. But so far whenever I was asked what it feels like to balance out a career with my domestic responsibilities, my response was academic. Now I finally know how painful it is a for a mother to be working when her child needs her."