Actor Zareen Khan, who last year drew attention with her item number Character Deela… in the Salman Khan-starrer Ready,  has done it again. The actor will be seen in another periodic drama, Karikalan, after her not-so-memorable debut in Veer (2010).

Unlike the latter, this time Zareen will engage in many action scenes. “I have a sword fighting sequence in the film. It gave me quite an adrenaline rush,” she says, adding, that she attended special workshops to better her skill.

Directed by LI Kannan, Karikalan is an action drama on the lines of Ridley Scott’s Gladiator (2000). South actor Vikram plays the title role of the Chola emperor Karikalan, while Zareen plays one of the female leads.

It seems that the ball has started rolling for Zareen on the home front too. This year, the actor will be seen in the sequel of Sajid Khan’s Housefull (2010).

Zareen insists that she received many offers in between, but didn’t want to take up everything that came her way. “The expectations were really high with my first movie opposite Salman. But when it didn’t do well, I was targeted and criticised. That taught me a lesson. Now, I’d rather wait and do quality over quantity,” she says.

Refraining from disclosing much about her character in Housefull 2, she only says, “Here, my character demands that I look like a model,” says Zareen, adding, “In Veer, people couldn’t relate to me as it was a period drama. With the Housefull sequel being a contemporary film, people will relate to my character better.”