Sameera Reddy made her Telugu debut with Narasimhudu in 2004. She was paired opposite Jr. NTR in the film. In the Hindi film industry, she was still new back then. Her team and the people around her didn’t approve of her choice. But she did what she felt was right at that point.
In an exclusive conversation with NDTV, Sameera Reddy, who boasts a 30-year career, looks back and says she took the right decision back then.
In the following year, she appeared with Chiranjeevi in a film called Jai Chiranjeeva. She made her Tamil debut in Vaaranam Aayiram, headlined by Suriya. She also worked with Mohanlal in the Malayalam film Oru Naal Varum.
‘People Said I Was Making a Mistake’
Reflecting on the current trend of top actresses doing South films, Sameera tells us: “When I started, I was told, ‘Only flop actresses go to the South.’ I, being a South Indian, was very taken aback by that line. I remember my then-team said, ‘You are making a mistake.’ I said my father was more proud when I worked with Chiranjeevi, NTR, Suriya, and Ajith. My family is very proud of their South Indian heritage. I told my team I am doing South films because it makes me happy and my family happy. That was the best move I have ever made.
“I have not been treated with so much respect and love. My South fans have been the strongest fans I have ever had. It’s funny that today the picture has changed and all the big actresses want to go to the South. While the truth was South was always the frontrunner, far ahead in terms of technology and action. I broke that stereotype back then, and I am very proud of that work.”
‘South Is Taking a Lot More Risks’
SS Rajamouli’s Baahubali, Allu Arjun’s Pushpa, and many more films in recent times have been catalysts to initiate a conversation that the South is racing ahead of Hindi films.
Asked to share her thoughts on the Hindi vs South debate, Sameera says: “We can’t typecast South and Hindi films. Films are, after all, a director’s medium. But that being said, I feel South is taking a lot more risks than Hindi. Hindi seems to be just playing it a bit safe.”
Sameera also appeared in the Kannada film Varadhanayaka (2013) opposite Kiccha Sudeepa.
Sameera Reddy is all set to appear in Sanjay Dutt’s Aakhri Sawal almost after a decade.
With people calling Aakhri Sawal Sameera’s comeback film, what does she actually think?
“People can say what they want. I don’t take it badly because it’s their perception. In my mind, I have realized being in the public eye has so many different layers—and film is one of them. Let’s respect the fact it was my first pehchaan (identity).
“If people want to think I am coming back, I don’t mind. I have never left. But I did take a break for sure, before social media and after films,” Sameera sums up.
Sameera Reddy has been married to Akshai Varde since 2014. She welcomed her first child, Hans, in 2015. Their daughter, Nyra, was born in 2019.
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