My cultural identity is a very big part of who I am, says Sobhita

Sobhita Dhulipala’s career graph has been on the rise ever since her debut film Raman Raghav (2016). With great work across mediums, she is now looking forward to another commanding permanence in her upcoming film, Major.

Directed by Sashi Kiran Tikka, the film, a biopic of Major Sandeep Unnikrishnan, stars Adivi Sesh. This is the second time Sobhita is working with the actor and director, after Goodachari.

“Apart from the familiarity and trust I share with the unit, the story has been well articulated. I read about Sandeep Unnikrishnan a lot, and the way his life is being portrayed, it is like humanising a hero,” explains Sobhita, adding that her role in the action thriller has a lot of depth.

“I am naturally drawn to characters that are more layered. In Major too, the emotional arc my role goes through is very heartening. I can’t talk much about my role but it is something that I had to handle delicately,” shares the actor who did her research to understand the people around her character. Since the film is bilingual (Hindi and Telugu), Sobhita is glad that she’s able to speak her mother tongue (Telugu).

“I am comfortable in both languages, and Telugu is always close to my heart,” she says. Perhaps not many know that Sobhita is a Telugu girl born in Vizag.

Four years into showbiz, the actor states that her journey has been gratifying. For someone who moved to Mumbai at the age of 16 to step out of her ‘quaint little city’, it took a lot to get where she is now.

“I have done unconventional films. There is a kind of pleasure in impulsiveness. I had the opportunity of working with people who I looked up to. It has been very character-building and I am poised for higher honours,” she shares.

Ascribing her success to her attitude, she says, “I am a girl who takes calculated and uncalculated risks. I have been unafraid to take risks; in fact, taking risks comes naturally to me.” She adds that she has never shied away from being what she wanted to be.

Her social media timeline unveils a person who loves to read and write poetry. “I am fond of musicians and writers,” she says. She has also won a beauty pageant.

Ask her whether she still visits the seaside city of Vizag where she was raised, she says, “Yes, my parents live there and I just cannot resist getting back to my hometown. I am attached to my roots, and my cultural identity is a very big part of who I am.

The actress describes the lockdown as an opportunity to appreciate “the beauty of ordinariness.”