Model-turned-actress Gauahar Khan has managed to find her fan base in every section of the audience.

Be it the regular followers of TV reality shows like 'Bigg Boss', 'Jhalak Dikhhla Jaa', 'Fear Factor: Khatron Ke Khiladi', or making her sensational screen presence felt in the song 'Chokra Jawaan', 'Jhallah Wallah' as part of the film 'Ishaqzaade', or sharing screen space with Bollywood stars like Ranbir Kapoor and Vidya Balan in films like 'Rocket Singh: Salesman of the Year', 'Begum Jaan' and recently in the web series 'Tandav' and her latest film '14 Phere' - Gauahar has done it all.

Even though she is mostly grabbing headlines for her social and personal life on social media, the actress says with time, her parameters on choosing projects, especially films, has changed because she is looking to explore her acting skills now.

Gauahar told IANS: " Honestly speaking, I do not look at anything with regret. I do not regret why I do not have the role of female protagonist opposite Ranbir Kapoor in a Bollywood film or why directors, producers are not considering me for lead roles etc. For films, the footage did not matter to me, the character did. If you look at my character in 'Ishaqzaade', 'Begum Jaan', those scenes and moments in the story were important. For me, it is always about creating something on-screen that resonates with the audience, and it did.

"See, initially, for me, it was to use every opportunity with the best of my ability because I started from zero; today it is around 19 years that I am here in the business of entertainment. So much has changed! Really...now because of the OTT platform, actors like myself are getting the opportunity to showcase our acting talent; earlier in cinema chances were limited."

Gauahar started her journey as a model and was one of the participants in 2002 for the Femina Miss India beauty pageant. She went on gaining popularity with many non-fiction TV shows like 'The Khan Sisters', 'Ticket to Bollywood', 'India's Raw Star', 'I Can Do That' and different seasons of 'Bigg Boss'. She was the winner of 'Bigg Boss 7'.

"The web space is interesting for me and I am getting good show offers from OTT platforms. 'Tandav' was an important show for me that was released on Amazon Prime Video. I have a couple of things lined up for OTT and again, all of them are very versatile and interesting. Now my parameter of choosing a project is to collaborate with directors and storytellers who will use my potential as an actress; I want to be challenged with new and exciting roles," said Gauahar who also appeared in the Hotstar special sitcom show 'The Office'.

(Arundhuti Banerjee can be contacted at arundhuti.b@ians.in)