The Pawan Kalyan-starrer Ustaad Bhagat Singh is all set to release on March 19, coinciding with the Ugadi festival. Directed by Harish Shankar, the film stars Sreeleela and Raashii Khanna alongside the actor-politician. Interestingly, Raashii reveals that she signed the film even before listening to the story. “When I heard that it was Pawan Kalyan garu’s film, I immediately said 'Yes'. Ever since I did my first Telugu film, I have heard so much about his stardom and the phenomenon called ‘Pawanism’, and I have been wanting to act with him at least once. With Ustaad Bhagat Singh, that dream has come true,” says the actor, adding that it was the first time she ever signed a film without hearing the script. When asked if she would do the same for another actor, Raashii quickly says, “Yes, if I get an opportunity to work with Mahesh Babu garu.”

Praising Pawan Kalyan's humility, Raashii says, “He is a very powerful personality, but on the sets, he is extremely simple. He reads a lot of books and has an innocence about him that I really admire.” Giving us an insight into the kind of conversations she had with Pawan Kalyan, Raashii says, “On the first day, he asked me if I had always wanted to become an actor. I told him that I actually wanted to become an IAS officer. He speaks very little, but every word he says carries value. He encouraged me to do public service as well. Pawan garu always thinks about people, and I learnt a lot about humanity from him.”

In Ustaad Bhagat Singh, Raashii Khanna plays Shloka, whom she describes as "a very modern girl". Speaking further about Shloka, Raashii says, "In this film, every character has importance, and my role also has strong characterisation. I also have a mass song in the film. Since I love dancing, I really enjoyed shooting for it." The actor adds that she requested director Harish Shankar to include her in at least one song.

Raashii, who witnessed the kind of fan frenzy that follows Pawan Kalyan, says that the pre-release event was an unforgettable experience. “When I looked at the crowd from the stage, it felt like his fans were worshipping him like a God,” says Raashii. The actor also opened up about the kind of scheduling that team Ustaad Bhagat Singh had to follow to ensure Pawan Kalyan balanced his political and acting career. “Sometimes I shot in the morning and sometimes in the evening. Before the shoot began, director Harish Shankar told me the timings might be unpredictable. I told him I could always give my time to this film.”

Raashii also reveals that she doesn't share screentime with Sreeleela in Ustaad Bhagat Singh. Talking about director Harish Shankar, the actor praised his work ethic. “He is very smart and understands the pulse of the mass audience extremely well. Usually, a commercial film of this scale takes around 120 days to complete, but he finished it in just 40 days. He worked tirelessly, often sacrificing sleep. Sometimes he would even write punch dialogues right on the set,” says Raashii, adding that the team worked around the clock on many days. “We even did 24-hour shifts."

Reminiscing about the first day of the shoot with Pawan Kalyan, Raashii says that his simplicity was the most memorable aspect. “In fact, I forgot my dialogues after seeing him, but he made things very comfortable." The actor also spoke about balancing commercial films and content-driven projects. “Commercial films are important because working with big stars gives you huge visibility. After that, you can explore different kinds of roles. Right now, I’m enjoying doing content-driven cinema as well. I always wanted to balance both, because I love acting and exploring different characters,” says the actor.

Expressing her gratitude to the Telugu audience for constantly supporting her, Raashii says, "Whatever I am today is because of the Telugu film industry and its audience." In fact, she also opens up about how this confidence comes in handy when she gets opportunities in cinema, especially when it comes to rejecting them. “From the beginning of my career, I have said no to many projects. But not every decision will be right. You learn through the process and your mistakes."

When asked if the box-office results affect her, especially since her recent release, Telusu Kada, didn't quite make the expected impact, a pragmatic Raashii says, “I gave it my 100 per cent. Sometimes films work, and sometimes they don’t. If a film becomes a hit, I don’t get overly excited. If it fails, I won't get too disappointed either. My job is to sign a film and give my best. The result is not in my hands, so I don’t think about it too much."

With Ustaad Bhagat Singh releasing during the Ugadi festival, Raashii Khanna assures the audiences that the film has all the makings of a festive release. “Most importantly, you will get to see vintage Pawan Kalyan garu on screen,” says Raashii, who also lists out her upcoming slate of films and OTT series. "I play a cop in the Hindi remake of Sankranthiki Vasthunnam with Akshay Kumar. There is Farzi Season 2, and another Prime Video series where I play a Punjabi police officer. In Tamil, I am part of Rowdy and Co, and I am also listening to a few scripts in Telugu," signs off Raashii, who has her plate full and is kickstarting the year with Ustaad Bhagat Singh.