BY VICKEY LALWANI

Manini De is out of Cinevistaas' Saathiya on Sahara One. Ekta Behl (Mohnish Behl's wife) has stepped into her shoes.

Explains Siddharth Malhotra of Cinevistaas, "After Saathiya shifted to the prime time slot (9 pm) from episode 48 on, we needed Avanti's character to be a little longer. Earlier, the story involved a lot of youthful romance, but now it will also comprise heavy duty drama. Manini has been in the US for a while and says she can't return before 2 November. Unfortunately, I don't have a good bank to fall back on."

Supporting his choice, he adds, "Ekta will be a fresh face who I am sure will deliver as per expectations."

"There was no friction between Manini and Cinevistaas/Sahara. We parted amicably. She is a fine actress and I would definitely like to work with her again," he says.

Interestingly, this would be Ekta's third serial with Cinevistaas, Saahil and Junoon being her earlier shots at the telly.

Says she, "Cinevistaas is like family. I am very comfortable with them. I have never taken a hiatus from acting. I have just struck the correct balance between work and family. I have done some films in between, including Vaastav. I have two films awaiting release- Life Ho To Aisi (Shahid Kapoor, Amrita Rao) and Hum Tum Aur Mom.

I haven't even asked Cinevistaas how much of a role I would have in Saathiya. Nobody can guarantee you the length of a role on Indian television, at least."

Manini De was unavailable for comment.