After completing Rohit Shetty's Cirkus, actor Pooja Hegde has been signed to play the female lead opposite Ram Charan in the Chiranjeevi-starrer Acharya.

According to a source, Pooja plays a performance-oriented role and it requires her to avoid make-up. "Pooja gave a 20-day call sheet and will join the sets of Acharya on February 9 in Hyderabad. She goes de-glam to play a tribal girl and is thrilled to take up this challenging character," says a source close to the development.

Directed by Koratala Siva, Acharya also features Kajal Aggarwal as the female lead opposite Chiranjeevi. A socio-political entertainer, the film highlights a man's fight to conserve natural resources.