Samantha's trilingual takes her to Bollywood

Samantha's trilingual takes her to Bollywood

... but the actress plays it down and is all praise for director Gautham Vasudev Menon

Taniya Talukdar

While Sonam Kapoor is still unsure about making a film debut in the south, there is one actor down south who isn't keen on moving to Bollywood yet. Samantha Ruth Prabhu, who has replaced Sonam Kapoor in Mani Ratnam's upcoming Tamil flick, claims that she is happy doing films down south. She says, "I am not too keen on making a Bollywood debut so soon. In fact, it is not priority. Right now I am happy here as I love the roles that are being written for me. Moreover, I am a south Indian, born and brought up in Chennai."
But despite her claim, Samantha's film with her mentor Gautham Vasudev Menon is a trilingual, which in a way will mark her entry into B'wood. The film, which is a love story, has Samantha paired opposite Aditya Roy Kapur. Samantha, says she is not really looking at the film as her launch into B'wood. "Gautham sir offered the role to me, and as he was making it in three languages, he wanted the same heroine in Hindi as well. I agreed to do it. I value his judgement and what he says holds good for me. He is my mentor," she says. Rumour has it that Samantha was the original choice for Ekk Deewana Tha. Is she relieved that she didn't do it, given that it bombed at the BO? "I was never offered Ekk Deewana Tha," she asserts. And though she is excited about doing a film with Mani Ratnam, the actor remains tightlipped about the project. "It is strictly confidential and I can't reveal anything about it right now," says Samantha. The year ahead is crammed with work schedules for the actor. "It's going to be a busy year ahead as I will probably have eight releases," she says. So how does she feel about being one of the most sought after actors in the south and Samantha says, "I believe that every Friday our fate changes at the box office, so I really don't put much thought to this."
taniya.talukdar @timesgroup.com

ALL FOR THE GURU: Samantha Ruth Prabhu