Radhika Apte is on a career high. Even short films starring her have been received well by both audience and critics. And now, Manjhi The Mountain Man, has been going viral, even before its release. Apte on Sunday, joined co-star Nawazuddin Siddiqui in Hyderabad to promote Manjhi. “I like Hyderabad. I have a lot of friends and family here so it’s always a holiday when I come here. Two of my very close friends from school had shifted to Hyderabad earlier and my grandmother’s sister and my aunt stay here. I’m close to all of them,” the actress says.
She’s eager to talk about Ahalya, a short directed by Sujoy Ghosh. “The reactions to Ahalya have been overwhelming.” Apte has been slowly making her presence felt in regional cinema and her work spans the Bengali, Telugu, Tamil and Marathi movie industries. She also feels regional cinema has given her better exposure. “I did not do it intentionally. I took up these movies because they were good projects. But they do give me better exposure, visibility. When I go to these states and when people recognise me because of my work in that particular language, I do feel good.”
She’s also gearing up for a movie with Rajinikanth. “It feels amazing to have bagged that project. I did not even give a screen test for the movie. I just got a call one day saying I’m being sent the synopsis and that they want me on board. Only three Bollywood actresses have worked with him so far... I am the fourth. So I feel privileged,” she adds.
Like Siddiqui, Manjhi’s shoot did put Apte to the test too and the star explained the “hectic” schedule in Bihar… where the story is based.
“It was hectic. We’d wake up by 3 am and sleep by 10 or 11 pm. That place is not developed at all. And it is a naxal-affected region so, I must admit the shoot wasn’t comfortable but people there were very helpful.”
Show business has kept Apte away from British musician husband Benedict Taylor for long stretches. The two wed in 2011 shortly after her year-long stint in the UK to learn dance. Despite her movie shoots and the distance, the actress says the duo have made time for each other. “We manage, don’t worry,” she says, before wrapping up.
