New Delhi: Janhvi Kapoor, who is set to make her Telugu cinema debut with Jr NTR in 'Devara', says working in the south film industry makes her feel closer to her late superstar mother Sridevi. Janhvi will also be seen starring opposite Telugu star Ram Charan in his untitled film.
Janhvi Kapoor on doing films in South
Known for her roles in Hindi films such as "Dhadak," "Gunjan Saxena: The Kargil Girl," and "Mili," Kapoor felt it was the "right time" to enter South cinema.
"Somehow, being in that environment and hearing and speaking the language makes me feel closer to my mom. It just felt like the right time; I felt drawn to it. Mom has such a history with the families of NTR sir and Ram Charan sir. It's an honor to work with these extremely talented actors,” said Kapoor, whose latest release is "Mr. & Mrs. Mahi," in an interview with PTI.
Sridevi's films with popular south actors
Sridevi, who passed away in 2018 in Dubai at the age of 54, began her career as a child actor in M.A. Thirumugham's Tamil film "Thunaivan" (1969). While fluent in Tamil, her mother tongue was Telugu.
The veteran star shared the screen with Charan’s father, Chiranjeevi, in movies like “Jagadeka Veerudu Athiloka Sundari,” “Ranuva Veeran,” “SP Parasuram,” and “Mosagadu.” She also co-starred with Telugu cinema legend NT Rama Rao, grandfather of Jr NTR, in several films such as "Vetagaadu," "Satyam Shivam," and "Anuraga Devata."
Sridevi also acted in films such as “Anuraga Devatha”, and “Simham Navvindi” among others, which were produced by NTR Jr’s father Nandamuri Harikrishna.
Janhvi shares being a fan of south film industry
Janhvi said she has grown up watching South movies and admires the onscreen “charisma” of actors.
“I've always been a fan of their cinema. I love their conviction with which they make films and the charisma that the actors hold. Not that we don't have charisma here, (but) there’s a swagger, the way they portray their heroes, they romanticise their heroines. There's a specific flavour to Telugu, Tamil and Malayalam cinema; they are all so individual," she said.
"Dad has made so many remakes, so a big activity at home would be to watch Tamil and Telugu films. He was obsessed with buying their rights. It’s been a big part of my upbringing to watch these films," the actor said, referring to her producer-father Boney Kapoor's filmography.
Mr and Mrs Mahi
"Mr. & Mrs. Mahi", also featuring Rajkummar Rao, released in theatres on May 31. The film, which has received a mixed response, is directed by Sharan Sharma and backed by Dharma Productions.