Pooja Hegde will soon be seen romancing Prabhas in the highly anticipated pan-India film Radhe Shyam. Directed by Radha Krishna Kumar, it will release on March 11. The Free Press Journal caught up with the actress for an exclusive conversation. Excerpts:
Since Radhe Shyam is based on astrology, do you believe in it?
Yeah, I do believe in astrology. I feel there’s a proper science behind it. There’s a proper study behind alternate science. My father says that if a doctor gives an allopathy medicine and it doesn’t work for you, whereas if an astrologer tells you something and it doesn’t work, you blame the science. I have gotten a few great readings, sometimes life-changing too.
Post the debacle of your Hindi debut Mohenjo Daro, you did Housefull 4 with a bigger star. Was it a conscious decision?
Mohenjo Daro was a fantastic debut on paper. I got to be paired opposite Hrithik Roshan, coming together with Ashutosh Gowariker after Jodhaa Akbar and UTV was backing it. It didn’t get better than that. However, the film didn’t work, but the media was very kind to me. Not being from a filmi family and coming from a middle-class educational family, you don’t have opportunities coming knocking at your door. It is a different ball game when you are an outsider. I did big films down South, and it gave me the freedom to choose, and I consciously picked big Hindi films like Housefull 4. I did it for Akshay sir and Sajid Nadiadwala, which also got me Kabhi Eid Kabhi Diwali with Salman (Khan) sir.
Do your failures affect you or get you frustrated?
It is disheartening. Two years of my life went in Mohenjo Daro, but what am I supposed to do about it? The thing is to move on, and I have grown up with a tough mother who doesn’t endorse grief and tears for a long time. I was gutted since the films which were offered to me before I signed Mohenjo Daro, you’ll be surprised. It is kind of a lesson for me, but every film has its own destiny.
How do you reinvent yourself now as an actor since you have the power to choose your roles?
I don’t have to reinvent. I have to invent because people here in Bollywood haven’t seen much of me. I don’t know whether they have seen my biggest South films, but I think I am still new here. I have a long way to go. There are so many roles that I want to do. I would love to do a film like Raazi. I hope I will select the right films based on my gut feelings.
A still from Radhe Shyam |
How has your journey been since you have done work in multilingual industries?
I did a film and post that I was bound under the contract of not doing any other film, and then two years went by in the pandemic. There was a time when I did one South film, and there was no work coming my way for a year. I have always maintained that language is not a barrier. When I can watch Narcos in Spanish and enjoy it, then why not the audience. I have grown up watching films like Natsamrat in Marathi, and it blew my mind. I believe audiences have also gotten introduced to different kinds of cinema. I just want to be an Indian actor.
Do you feel the South Indian industry gives you more prominent roles like the one in Radhe Shyam?
All the industries give in their own ways. I have been lucky, but there is a plus’ and minus’ for all. I just want to be accepted as an actor. In Radhe Shyam, I have an equal role as Prabhas. Obviously, you need a hero and a heroine for any love story. My character Prerana has so much to do in the film. It is exciting to do a different role like this.
