Vijayashanti original flag-bearer of action roles

The actress-turned-politician Vijayashanti is back in the news as she had bid adieu to BJP and likely to join Congress party but she is also dabbling with movies. She just agreed to play a key role in Nandamuri Kalyan Ram’s upcoming film since she can’t truly give up acting. “Vijayashanti’s first love would always remain acting and likes to come before the arc lights once in a while, amidst her political career, Since has carved a niche for herself with 170-odd movies and was hailed as female superstar,” says a veteran producer, who reminds her sterling performance in ‘Sarileru Neekevvaru’ wherein she takes on the might of ruthless local politician. “Her larger-than-image which she earned over the years came in handy and she could match strides with superstar Mahesh Babu in the film and come up triumphant,” he adds.

He claims that she was the original action heroine and torch-bearer of women-centric movies in Tollywood and delivered a slew of blockbusters like ‘Prathighatana’ ‘Karthavyam’ and ‘Osey Ravulamma’ and shattered box office records in 80s and 90s. “She was the only Telugu actress whose films were sold like hot cakes in Tamil Nadu. Her action sequences drew whistles from Telugu and Tamil audiences alike and she also introduced the genre of multilingual films,” adds the producer, who claims that her films like “Police Lockup’ and ‘Rajasthan’ were made in dual languages. “Her market was on par with big heroes and she was also known for fiery action sequences to be hailed as a female superstar. Her larger-than-life image was exploited by both Tellugu and Tamil filmmakers and dished out action flicks with a social message,” he points out.

She was last seen in ‘Naayudamma,’ which hit the theatres in 2006 and returned to acting after 13 years for her role in ‘Sarileru Neekevvaru’. "Although actresses like Anushka Shetty could pull in crowds for her female-centric movies like ‘Arundathi’ and ‘Bhagmathie’ but nobody could replace Vijayashanti’s aura and charisma on the big screen,” he concludes.