The upcoming release Shashtipoorthi marks Aakanksha Singh’s return to Telugu cinema after a considerably huge gap. Her last film project Clap, which was a straight-to-OTT release, released nearly 3 years ago. The actor however sounds unfazed about not making frequent appearances on the big screen. She says, “If I sit and wait for big films, there is no guarantee they will come to me. If your work is good, people will approach you — there might be a delay, but they will.” While Aakanksha mentions she has been craving for a theatrical release, she also talks about holding herself answerable to her audience. “I get many messages on social media, asking, ‘why the gap?’ My job is to entertain my audience, and I am giving my 100 percent.”
In Shashtipoorthi, which also stars Rajendra Prasad, Archana and debutant actor Rupeysh, who is doubling up as the producer, Aakanksha plays a village treasurer named Janaki. “Usually you see middle-aged men performing these roles. That’s a strong point to be made, as a young girl. She is strong, independent, educated yet a proper Telugu ammai at the same time. This role has many shades,” says Aakanksha. The actor also recalls shooting under extreme weather conditions in Godavari, which she terms as both challenging and rewarding. “We shot there for 30 days during peak summer. We would travel from one point to another by boat, followed by walking 30 minutes to the shoot location. That itself was physically challenging, and then you had to be ready to perform,” says the actor. At the same time, Aakanksha describes this as being one of the perks of being an actor. “As actors, we get to go to different locations. For me, it was a new experience to sit and commute via a boat. I enjoyed it a lot.”
Describing Shashtipoorthi as a family film, Aakanksha says, “I am a family person, and I crave to go to the theatres. This is a film where you can, and should, go with your family members. Parents are one’s biggest support, love, the top most priority in life - and this film talks about that.”
Aakanksha Singh fondly recalls Malli Raava (2017), her debut Telugu film which released back in 2017. She notes, “When I signed it, I didn’t think about its production scale or big stars; I went with my instinct. I am grateful that people gave it so much love, and still talk about it. Malli Raava was also my first film as a lead, across industries — so it is very close to my heart.”
The Malli Raava actor further talks about her criteria for choosing films, stating, “I go with films that I would want to watch as an audience.” She adds, “I don’t want to be part of stories where I am not doing anything. Even if I have one scene to own in the entire film, I feel my job is done. I don’t want to do random things.”
Aakanksha, who is also in talks for doing a Tamil film, talked about her aspirations to explore the action genre in the future. “To give a reference, I would love to do a full-fledged action film like Lara Croft: Tomb Raider. Like I said, I want to explore more as an actor. My next Telugu film is a thriller, and it is a genre I had never tried earlier.”
At the same time, Aakanksha states that she has no ultimate goal in the industry, besides wanting to improve herself with each film. “I want to try different things, and not repeat myself. People should remember me as a performer,” she notes.
