Avinash Lohana (MUMBAI MIRROR; April 13, 2016)

After winning raves for Anurag Kashyap's sister Anubhuti's short film, Call Waiting, Sayani Gupta has now won the Best Actress - Honourable Mention at the Indian Film Festival of Los Angeles (IFFLA) for another short, Payal Sethi's Leeches.

"I play a teenager, Raisa, trying to save her younger sister from being sold off to a rich businessman in a fake marriage. When Raisa tells her boyfriend she's ready to take her sister's place, he points out that isn't possible because she isn't a virgin anymore. Desperate to save her sibling, she uses leeches to regain her virginity," says Margarita, with a Straw's Khanun.

The film is set in Hyderabad in a poor Muslim community and Sayani recalls that she had draped her dupatta around herself when she had gone to audition for the role at Guneet Monga's office. "As soon as Payal saw me, she was convinced I'd pull off the part. Raisa is a strong girl who had the courage to fight against all odds. As part of my prep, I worked really hard on my Hyderabadi accent," she informs, adding that the 30-minute short was filmed over 12 days during which she literally lived in a burqa.

Sayani shared her IFFLA award with co-star Preeti Golacha, who plays her younger sister. Leena Yadav's Parched, which she is also a part, of bagged the award for the Best Feature under the Audience Choice Awards. She will also be seen in Nitya Mehra's Baar Baar Dekho next, alongside Sidharth Malhotra and Katrina Kaif, and in Anurag Basu's Ranbir Kapoor-Katrina Kaif starrer Jagga Jasoos. "I am hoping that I will soon be called to shoot my remaining portions for Jagga Jasoos. We have wrapped up Baar Baar Dekho, in which I play Sid and Kat's friend. Both are really sweet and lovely to work with," she smiles.