Mumbai: Like some of her compatriots, who fetched titles in beauty pageants of global recognition, Miss Universe Lara Dutta also could soon go the Bollywood way.

''My doors are open. I'll definitely put my fingers on all the pies offered to me, including films. But in heart of hearts, I would love to direct movies, more so documentaries with a focus on women,'' she told a press conference on Monday, a day after returning to her homeland since the winning of the coveted crown two months back in Nicosia (Cyprus).

Wearing a Hemant Trivedi-designed peach-coloured dress with works of silver on it, the 22-year-old, when asked about her role as goodwill ambassador for the United Nations for the next one year, said, she would work for spreading awareness among people on AIDS and HIV. ''I will also focus on issues like reproductive rights of women, gender equality and spreading literacy,'' she added.

The Bangalore-based beauty queen also intends to be associated with a fund for compulsory education of the girl child, to be instituted with the help of the United Nations Fund for Population (UNFPA).

Asked how she spent her past eight weeks abroad, Lara said she had been busy travelling across 13 countries, attending seminars and working on social concerns like AIDS/HIV and illiteracy besides modelling for one of the pageant's sponsors.

''For the next one year, I will be based in New York as part of my agreement with the international pageant organisers,'' she added.

The youngest child of a retired Air Force pilot, Lara was named after the heroine in the classic movie 'Dr Zhivago'. She made her impact early as a teenager and won for herself quite a few international modelling awards.

She decided to give the Miss India contest a shot, saying, ''there is no greater honour for any model can have to represent India internationally.''

Queried why is it necessary for all beauty queens to talk of a social cause, and not be just models, she said, ''When I started as a model, I used to do bit of social work, but no one noticed it. But now, if I can get the support of people associated with it like the UNFPA and work on better scale, then why not?"

Asked to relive her moments of glory, she mused: ''It was incredible. I don't remember what thoughts went past me, when my name was announced as the winner. But I can recollect the apprehension I had when only the last two of us were on the stage.

''It was a junction when your entire life would be changed. All your dreams made possible, my parents would feel their lives were made incredible. It was my dad's birthday. So when my name was called out, I could only mutter, 'happy birthday, dad.''

UNI