Glory road

JITESH PILLAAI INTERVIEWS SAMANTHA RUTH PRABHU, THE SOUTH SENSATION WHO'S ALL IN THE NEWS THESE DAYS

- JITESH PILLAAI

Samantha Ruth Prabhu has made the nation swoon through her sensuous moves in Oo antava song from Pushpa. Juxtaposed to that is her rock-solid performance in The Family Man Season 2, where one saw her as a hardcore terrorist. She's seemingly at ease in both worlds and that's the mark of a brilliance in an actor. She's had an amicable separation with her husband Naga Chaitanya and hasn't let the emotional turmoil deter her from pursuing excellence. She's learnt to live life on her own terms and has made sure to put the past behind her, immersing herself in work and travel, and charity. Excerpts from a heart-to-heart talk with the supremely talented diva...

Samantha, what were you thinking when you were approached for The Family Man 2?

When The Family Man 2 came to me I had been looking for a challenging role for over two years. Female actors don't get too many characters that allow them to explore different dimensions. They always get unidimensional characters, which can be pretty frustrating. So when this role was offered to me it was a chance to explore a new facet which was not familiar to me. The actor in me couldn't resist the challenge.

You have done the entire gamut in the South whether it's Mahanati or Super Deluxe. What are the challenges you look for as an actor?

I always want to explore unfamiliar emotions. Otherwise, you tend to get typecast with the same familiar characters, and your performances start getting boring and repetitive. You can't really do much when you constantly get roles that explore the same emotional space with the same cute bubbly persona. It's important to break free from that and choose your roles. I know it's definitely a risk when the audiences love you for something. But sometimes the risk pays off like The Family Man did for me.