Getting even a day to breathe in between will be a vacation now

In October, Pooja hegde was in Italy with Prabhas for their love affair Radhe Shyam, at a time when the country was going through a second wave of COVID-19 cases. The actress admits that filming in the middle of a pandemic was a new experience.

We lived in a different world before that. The way we greet someone has changed today and so has the way we film. We were tested every five days, it’s incredible to be able to complete a program in such difficult times, she marvels.

Produce it on the Bahubali star, and she describes it as fun and wacky. The producers are her friends, so Prabhas was somewhere comfortable and not as shy as he appears in her interviews, she laughs.

Pooja had a big hit in Housefull 4 last year, and just before the rogue virus rioted, Kabhi Eid put Kabhi Diwali (KEKD), as Salman khanthe principal lady. Did the pandemic and the shutdown that followed slow the momentum? The break was imposed on everyone, so it was never just about me. It immobilized the whole world, it was like we were in an episode of Black Mirror, she explains, adding that, locked up at home, she learned to cook and to play the guitar. I saw all of BR Chopras Mahabharat and took many lessons. I also got into yoga and it changed my outlook on life. I worked on myself, internally rather than externally. Poojas has traveled extensively since restrictions were relaxed with SOPs in place, and reveals that a few days ago, while cleaning her bag, she found four boarding passes. In retrospect, it seems foolish that I travel during such times. I am fortunate to have been able to stay safe through regular testing. It’s a reality check! she shudders.

The actress has an enviable line-up of Hindi, Telugu and Pan-Indian films which are also very different. In Most Eligible Bachelor (MEB), she plays a standing comic while Radhe Shyams Prerna is a serious and mature girl. Besides KEKD with Salman, there is also Rohit Shettys Cirkus with Ranveer Singh. I have worked in several Telugu films and have been accepted by this industry as one of theirs. Being from Mumbai, I love Hindi movies. It feels good to be able to work in both languages ​​because I’ve always wanted to be known as an Indian actress, she says.

She emphasizes that a film is a film, no matter where it is made. This is how even a parasite could win an Oscar. Its director said that if you manage to overcome the one-inch barrier of subtitles, you can explore amazing content, she recalls, pointing out that when Ala Vaikunthapurramuloo was released digitally, the song Butta Bomma scored 450. million views with even David Warner. Language is no longer an obstacle.

After making his Hindi film debut opposite Hrithik Roshan in Mohenjo Daro, and with films starring stars like Prabhas, Salman and Ranveer, Pooja is on a dream run. I believe luck is created when opportunity meets hard work, she philosophizes, admitting that it hasn’t been easy coming from an unchecked background and having to swim against the tide. most of the time. I still have a long way to go.

And while Prabhas is goofy, Ranveer is a ball of energy and Salman is the coolest person in town, real and rare for the actress. She is currently juggling three different characters and two different languages. Even if you give an amazing idea of ​​Radhe Shyam in Telugu, you have to do it again in Hindi, she laughs.

Pooja also has a connection to period movies. Mohenjo Daro was set in 2016 BC, Housefull 4 juggled past and present while Radhe Shyam is set in 80s Europe and Gaddalakonda Ganesh in a village in Andhra in the same decade. Buzz is, even Cirkus is set in 1968. Some actors go their entire careers without making a period film when I’ve done so many already, says a proud Pooja, who recently completed Cirkus’ first show in Mumbai, now running for MEB in Hyderabad. The day after completing this program, I move to the Prabhass Plateau, also Hyderabad. I will be shooting for Radhe Shyam until December 25th, after which I will return to MEB. Then, back to Prabhass’s January 2 movie, she goes wild, adding that it’s satisfying to be so tired that the moment you touch the bed, you fall asleep. No vacation plans? Getting even a day to breathe in between will be a vacation right now, she laughs.