CORONATION Street actress Bhavna Limbachia feels like her lesbian storyline on the soap has changed her life.

The star and fellow actress Faye Brookes play lovers Rana Nazir and Kate Connor on the ITV show.

And Bhavna feels “honoured” to have been given a part that is “so relevant”.

She told website I Love Manchester, based in the city where the progamme is filmed: “This storyline has changed my life to be honest. I feel honoured to be able to shed light on something still so relevant in 2018.”

Bhavna is playing Coronation Street’s first ever Muslim gay character and says the plot is raising “important issues” and discussion on social media.

She continued: “Faye and I didn’t realise how big the storyline would be, and how big the fandom would grow.

“We are just grateful that we’re able to use this platform to raise important issues for the LGBTQ+ community, especially in the Asian community.”

The soap star added that whilst she knew the part would be challenging, she is happy to be generating conversation.

She said: “I felt such a huge responsibility to get the story right so I went away and did a lot of research, even though it was a big weight on my shoulders, I just wanted to make sure I did the storyline justice.

“The storyline is not there to offend people, it’s to educate them, it’s to spark conversation, so it’s there to make people aware that there is support available.”