It was Neela Megha Shama that introduced the 14-year-old Radhika Kumaraswamy to the Kannada film industry in 2002. Seen in a variety of roles, the teenager soon won the hearts of cinegoers with her acting skills even though some of her films didn’t fare well commercially. She went on to act in Yograj Bhat’s maiden film Mani , where she portrayed the role of a daughter of a prostitute. Later came Mane Magalu andTavarige Baa Tangi, where she starred alongside Shivrajkumar as his sister. “This is an evergreen film, which catapulted me to fame,” says Radhika over a telephonic chat and adds she always “nurtured a passion to act in films. I was crazy about dance too. I would watch TV and practise. I am a big fan of Madhuri Dixit and imitated her dance moves. I have never gone to an acting school nor do I have a training in any dance form. The director of Neela Megha Shama -- Rajkishore -- selected me for the film and there has been no looking back. It is hard work and dedication that has brought me this far,” recalls Radhika.
The young actress also won the Karnataka State Film Award for Best Actress for the film Tayi Illada Tabbali, which she cherishes to date and says one has to be open to portray any kind of a character as long as the story is strong. She has not “limited” herself to just Kannada films but has also acted in Tamil and Telugu films. “An actor need not be terrified about acting in a language unknown to them. As long as you can emote, language should not be a barrier for any artiste,” explains the actress, who is open to working in Malayalam and Hindi films.
She has also dabbled in film production and distribution but feels acting is the easiest of the lot. “Production is a difficult field. The most important factor for this is you should have loads of money. Then comes the gift of identifying talented people and those who will cooperate with you.”
She gives the example of Sweety Nanna Jodi, the film she produced and also acted in. “As a producer you have to choose the locations, see that the costumes are ready for the next day and also look into the next day’s shoots and arrangements. So after a long day of acting, looking into production was tough. But, making good cinema is what I want to do as long as I can,” states Radhika.
What is good cinema? And she replies, “It has to have a good story, a great team, good songs, production, even the publicity has to be done at the right time and it should have a good release. It is not a one man’s job but a joint effort by many people.”
Radhika adds that right now she is busy listening to stories to get into production again and also as a judge on Star Suvarna for the reality show Dance dance juniors 2. She feels children today are lucky as they have so many opportunities. “When we were young we had nothing. But, today there are so many forms even in contemporary dance – hip hop, jazz and so on. As a judge when I sit and watch the children, I wonder if they have any bones at all. They are so flexible. The good news is that girls are no way behind the boys, they too are into head stands and cartwheels and so on. Now, inspired by these kids, I too am practising head stands and cartwheeling,” she laughs.
About film stars entering the small screen, she says, it is a brilliant opportunity. “Us venturing into the television has a simple logic. When a film is released people come, pay and watch us on the big screen and then recognise us. But here, we go into their living rooms and become a part of their families. So, we feel closer to them and vice-versa,” she explains.
(Dance dance juniors 2, which went on air from June 24, will be telecast on weekends at 8 pm on Star Suvarna.)
