Michelle Yeoh, who plays Burmese democracy icon Aung San Suu Kyi in the movie The Lady, said she intends to return to Rangoon to visit her "hero" now that travel restrictions have eased.

The Hollywood actress, who spent a year preparing for the part, was detained at immigration at Burma's main city airport without explanation last June and immediately deported on the first available flight.


Meet and greet: Michelle Yeoh, who portrays Aung San Suu Kyi in the
movie The Lady, wants to visit her hero after visa restrictions have been
eased up. File pics

But now that visa restrictions appear to have been relaxed in the past few months, with even journalists allowed to travel and work freely in Myanmar, Yeoh says she has every intention of going back to see the Nobel peace laureate again.

"The country is truly beautiful and I want to go back," said Yeoh. "Last time we had time to visit only a few places. I want to see the rest and hopefully to see Daw Suu [Suu Kyi]."

Despite giving her blessing to the film-makers Suu Kyi has yet to see the film. It dwells on her love story with husband, British academic Michael Aris who died of cancer while they were apart kept by the regime, and French director Luc Besson said it is too emotionally raw.

"I think it would be very difficult for her to watch it," he said.



The director and the Hong Kong-based actress independently met Suu Kyi in Rangoon shortly after her release in November 2010 when the film shot mostly in Thailand was almost complete. But when the film was wrapped up they had both secured visas and intended to meet Suu Kyi once again and "have a big party".

"I just didn't expect them to turn me away," said Yeoh.

"I got to the immigration desk and some girls wanted to take photos. I agreed because I thought there wouldn't be any problem. Then some officers came along. They were very nice. I wasn't threatened or intimidated. But they said I had to leave the country."