When Anushka made her first appearance in Nagarjuna’s Super, the critics and audience said, “Looks wise she is fine, but she needs to learn acting!”. But now, she is synonymous with the term “Lady Superstar!”. The position of Anushka Shetty in Tollywood is now irreplaceable by any actress. While this journey looks quite like a dream run, it didn’t happen overnight. It’s been thirteen years since Anushka came into the film industry and all she knew was to work hardest for any role she chose.
It is undoubtedly hardwork which brought Anushka to this deserving position. Usually, a female lead loses her charm after getting paired opposite all the leading heroes of a film industry but Anushka overcame this norm. After the mesmerizing name she got with her cult film Arundhati, the crown of stunning female lead didn’t leave her. Just like how admiration for Sachin never fades away even after numerous cricketers came in between, the following for Anushka never fell apart.
Anushka is one of those stunningly beautiful actresses with natural looks and breathtaking features. Obviously, the directors during her initial stages of her career chose to focus her good looks mainly. But, Arundhati featured her for the first time in a performance oriented role and people understood that she is not just a bunch of good features but also a powerhouse of talent. Completely contrasting to her ethnic look in Arundhati, Anushka sported a bikini in Prabhas’s Billa which stunned the audience. This decision is undoubtedly challenging because once a traditional image occurs for a female lead, they usually prefer to stay in the safe zone for a while.
After the tenure of Vijayashanti, the era of female oriented films has went into darkness because of the business factor which forms the basis about film industry. The producers prefer to keep hero centric films as the main option as they have the minimum guarantee of returns. But with Anushka, the golden days for female lead were back. The producers invested nearly 40 crore on Arundhati and Anushka didn’t disappoint them! The film not only brought back the returns, but also fetched profits for the buyers. The producers came forward to cast Anushka in female oriented films and Gunasekhar’s Rudramadevi along with recent flick Bhagamathie are classic examples of it.
Anushka made the audience skip a beat with her balanced performance as princess Devasena in Baahubali and the contrast from the younger Devasena to the old and battered Devasena was eye popping. It would be amazing to know that in between Baahubali’s filming, she had to gain much weight to look convincing for the obese woman role she did in Prakash Kovelamudi’s Size Zero.
Just like how antique things get better with age, Anushka is getting even more beautiful, balanced and poised with her performances even after being in the 30 something league! This sure looks like a great era for female leads in Tollywood.
